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PUBLIC EDUCATION IN 
DELAWARE 



A REPORT TO THE 

PUBLIC SCHOOL COMMISSION 

OF DELAWARE 

WITH AN APPENDIX CONTAINING 
THE NEW SCHOOL CODE 



GENERAL EDUCATION BOARD 

61 Broadway New York 

1919 



(jiCrf 






PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 



PUBLIC EDUCATION IN 
DELAWARE 



A REPORT TO THE PUBLIC SCHOOL 
COMMISSION OF DELAWARE 

WITH AN APPENDIX CONTAINING 
THE NEW SCHOOL CODE 



GENERAL EDUCATION BOARD 

61 Broadway New York' 

1919 






COPYRIGHT, I919, 
BY 

General Education Boaio) 



©CI.A53C127 
JUL 10 i9!y 



CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Preface vii 

Introduction xi 

L Delaware: Its People AND Industries . 3 

II. Present School System 6 

in. State Board of Education and Com- 
missioner OF Education 12 

IV. County School Commissions and County 

Superintendents 20 

V. District School Committees and Boards 

of Education 30 

VI. The Teachers 39 

VII. The Schools and Their Work ... 48 

VIII. Enrollment AND Attendance, ... 64 

IX. Financing the Schools 72 

X. Conclusions 83 

XI. Appendix 

a. Statistical Tables 97 

b. New School Code iir 



PREFACE 

The Legislature of the State of Delaware, at the 
session in 191 7, passed an act for the purpose of creat- 
ing a commission to study educational conditions in 
Delaware and make recommendations to the Legisla- 
ture of 1919. The Act of 1917, Chapter 186, which 
created said commissic«i, read in part as follows: 

That the Governor of the State of Delaware be and he is hereby 
authorized and empowered to appoint a Conunission of five members, 
one from each County of the State and two at large, to make a survey 
of the public schools for both white and colored children in the State, 
to study the administration of the said schools, to consider the appropria- 
tions made therefor, to investigate the use of the funds so appropriated, 
to harmonize, unify, and revise the school laws, to develop an educational 
system suited to the conditions existing in the State, providing for an 
improved and efl&cient administration of all free school matters and the 
training of a competent teaching force, and said Commission is hereby 
directed to report its findings and recommendations to the Governor, 
which report shall be transmitted by the Governor to the General 
Assembly at its session of 1919 * • * 

That the said Commission shall have power to arrange the organiza- 
tion and equipment of the survey as it may deem best, to employ and fix 
the compensation of clerical, professional, expert and other help, to pur- 
chase such books and suppUes as it may require, and in general to make 
any provisions for the work as may be deemed necessary and expedient. 

The Commission was made up of the following mem- 
bers: Caleb E. Burchenal, chairman; John S. Mullin, 

vii 



viii PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

Frank L. Grier, Joseph Frazier, Henry P. Scott, and 
the late L. Scott Townsend. 

The Commission invited the General Education 
Board to make the proposed survey and the present 
volume embodies the report made to the Survey Com- 
mission. The appendix contains the new State Educa- 
tional Code subsequently adopted by the Legislature 
and signed by the Governor. 



INTRODUCTION 

The general assembly of Delaware at its 19 17 session 
authorized the appointment of a commission to survey 
the public schools and revise the school laws of the state; 
this commission invited the General Education Board 
to make the survey; the present volimie constitutes its 
report. 

The facts here presented will, it is believed, convince 
the people of Delaware of the urgent importance of 
educational reorganization at this time. Delaware is a 
prosperous state fully able to provide an efficient and 
up to date school system for the children of the common- 
wealth. This the state is far, very far, from now possess- 
ing. The present school system is not indeed entirely 
without good features, for which full credit will be given 
in the course of this report. But, for reasons that will 
appear, what is good in the state school system is not 
effective; and over and above the few excellent features 
in question, the system is in many respects antiquated 
and undeveloped; its financial support is inadequate, 
general and local supervision are alike unsatisfactory, 
the teaching staff is largely untrained, and school build- 
ings are with few exceptions seriously defective. In the 
following pages, these statements will be substantiated 



X INTRODUCTION 

and suggestions looking to improvement will be made. 
It should, however, be understood in advance that the 
suggestions made in this report are designed to bring 
about, not an ideal state of affairs, but such improve- 
ments as are at the moment desirable and practicable. 
It is our confident belief that if the recommendations 
here made are adopted the state will at once obtain 
an intelligently organized school system; and, what is 
even more important, conditions favorable to steady 
educational progress will have been established. From 
time to time in the future, further steps can readily be 
taken, as they are recommended by experience and sup- 
ported by public interest. 



PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 



Public Education in Delaware' 

I. DELAWARE: ITS PEOPLE AND INDUSTRIES 

A STATE school system ought to be planned with 
deliberate reference to the social and industrial 
conditions of the state which it is meant to serve. 
It is therefore important at the outset to learn the salient 
facts respecting the people of Delaware, their origin, 
their occupations, and their opportunities. 

According to the United States Census of 1910, Dela- 
ware had at that date a population of 202,322. The 
number is now larger, owing especially to the recent 
rapid growth of Wilmington. The population in 1910 
was distributed as follows: Kent County, 32,721; New 
Castle County (exclusive of Wilmington), 35,777; Wil- 
mington, 87,411; Sussex Coimty, 46,413. The growth 
between 1900 and 1910 had been small, being only 9.5 
per cent., as compared with 21 per cent, in the country 
at large. This increase was confined principally to Wil- 
mington, which gained 10,903, as compared with a gain 
of 6,684 ill the rest of the state; in this decade New Castle 
County (exclusive of Wilmington) increased 2,588, Sus- 
sex County increased 4,137, while Kent County lost 41. 
'The schools of WOmlngton are not included in this study. 

3 



4 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

Delaware is largely a rural state. There were in igio 
in the entire commonwealth only four places having a 
population of 2,500 or more: Wilmington, with a pop- 
ulation of 87,411 ; Dover, with 3,720; Milford, with 2,603; 
and New Castle, with 3,351. Forty-eight per cent, of 
the population of the state live in these four towns — 
43 per cent, in Wilmington, and 5 per cent, in Dover, 
Milford, and New Castle. The remaining 52 per cent, 
of the population are rural. There has been little change 
in the proportion of urban and rural dwellers since 1900. 
The generally rural character of the state becomes ap- 
parent, however, only when Wilmington is excluded: 
92 per cent, of the population outside of Wilmington live 
in small villages or in the open country. 

The population is composed almost entirely of two 
races — whites and negroes — 171,102 or 85 per cent, white, 
31,181 or 15 per cent, negro; there were, besides, only 
39 Indians, Chinese, and Japanese. 

Of the white population, 75 per cent, are native born 
of native parentage, 15 per cent, are native born with 
one or both parents foreign born, and 10 per cent are 
foreign born, the foreign born white population being con- 
fined ahnost entirely to Wilmington. Outside of Wilming- 
ton 96 per cent, of the white population are native born, 
and only 4.0 per cent, foreign born. It is also interesting 
to note that two thirds of the entire white population 
were born in Delaware. Thus, the schools of Delaware, 
particularly those outside of Wilmington, deal with an 
unusually homogeneous and stable white population. 



DELAWARE: ITS PEOPLE AND INDUSTRIES 5 

The negro population (31,181) is increasing, though 
slowly, having gained less than 3,000 since 1890. Its 
distribution in 1910 was as follows: Kent County, 7,561, 
or 23 per cent, of the total population of the county; 
New Castle County (exclusive of Wilmington) 6,601, or 
18 per cent.; and Sussex County, 7,938, or 17 per cent. 

The people of Wilmington are engaged in pursuits and 
occupations incident to modern commerce and industry 
on a large scale; the rest of the state is engaged in general 
and diversified agriculture, particularly vegetable and 
fruit growing, and closely related industries, such as fruit 
canning. Trades and professions are represented in the 
smaller cities and villages to the extent that they are 
required by the needs of such communities. 

The schools of Delaware thus serve two races — ^white 
and colored. Those outside of Wilmington — and this 
report deals with those only — serve a homogeneous, 
stable American population, distinctly rural, occupied 
particularly in the production of vegetables, in orchard- 
ing, and in related industries. 

The educational needs of a people composed primarily 
of native stock and so engaged are well known and clearly 
defined. Are the schools of Delaware meeting these 
needs satisfactorily? What changes are called for, if 
any, in organization, supervision, teacher training, finan- 
cial support, etc., that the schools may serve the state 
more effectively? To answer these and kindred ques- 
tions is the object of this report. 



n. PRESENT SCHOOL SYSTEM 

THE administration of the schools of Delaware is 
centered in three boards: the state board of edu- 
cation, the county school commission, and the 
district school committee in rural districts corresponding 
to the board of education in incorporated districts. 

Theoretically, the state board of education, consisting 
of seven members appointed by the governor, stands at 
the head of the system. It is, in the words of the law, 
the function of this board "to systematize and harmonize 
the work in the various free schools of the state, to render 
said schools more useful and efl&dent and to raise the 
standards of instruction and education therein." To 
these ends the state board of education has power to 
formulate courses of study, to select textbooks, and to 
prescribe rules and regulations controlling the certifica- 
tion of teachers, the sanitary equipment and inspection 
of school buildings, etc. It may require records and 
reports from school officials and teachers, investigate 
the condition of the schools, recommend sqhool legisla- 
tion to the governor and general assembly, and may 
employ such other officers, besides its secretary, as are 
needed. Indeed, as far as the letter of the statute goes 
the state board of education possesses blanket powers to 

6 



PRESENT SCHOOL SYSTEM 7 

take such action ''as it may deem necessary and 
expedient to promote the physical and moral welfare 
of the children of the free schools of this state." We 
shall shortly see, however, that these powers are in the 
main nominal, rather than real. The state commis- 
sioner of education, appointed by the governor with the 
consent of the senate, acts as the secretary of the state 
board of education and is in a sense its executive oflScer. 

The county school commission, consisting of three 
members appointed by the governor, has, theoretically, 
jurisdiction over all schools of a county, both white and 
colored. To this end, the county school commission 
is authorized to visit all schools, to observe and question 
teachers concerning their methods of instruction and 
discipline, to act as a sanitary commission over school 
property, to lay out the boundaries between school dis- 
tricts, to hear complaints of patrons and teachers, and 
to confer with and aid the county superintendent. How 
far the commission is in position to make its action ef- 
fective, and how it is related to the state board will ap- 
pear in another chapter. 

The county superintendent, also appointed by the 
governor, but with the consent of the senate, though 
not an officer of the county school commission, is its 
agent as far as it has an agent. He advises with the 
district committees about improvements in grounds and 
buildings and in reference to the appointment of teachers. 
He counsels with teachers as to the organization of 
their schools, their instruction, and discipline. Subject to 



8 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

the authority of the state board of education, he also 
examines teachers and nonresident pupils, holds the 
county institute, directs the reading and study required 
for the renewal of certificates, and makes reports to the 
state board of education regarding his activities. 

The title of the local administrative body varies. If 
the school is in the open country or village, its adminis- 
trative body is the district school committee, and there 
is usually one such committee for each schoolhouse. 
Incorporated districts have boards of education. Strange 
to say, however, neither the district committee nor the 
board of education administers all the schools within its 
respective territory; for separate boards or committees 
are set up to have charge of schools for colored children. 
Indeed, if we may so far anticipate, white and colored 
schools are not only separately administered, they are, 
as far as local support goes, separately financed — the 
white schools enjoying all local revenues accruing from 
taxation upon the person and property of whites, the 
colored schools existing on the scanty proceeds from 
the taxation of the person and the property belong- 
ing to negroes. Thus, practically, there are two separate 
school systems, one for white, the other for colored 
children. No such anomalous and undemocratic ar- 
rangement can be found in any other state of the union. 

The powers and duties of the local boards are much the 
same. The district school committee or board of educa- 
tion holds the annual school elections, calls special elec- 
tions, levies and collects the local school taxes, borrows 



PRESENT SCHOOL SYSTEM 9 

money and issues bonds on the credit of the district, pro- 
vides school grounds, equipment and buildings, employs 
teachers, fixes their salaries and dismisses them for 
cause, determines the length of the school year in excess 
of the required minimum, and prescribes rules and regula- 
tions for the conduct of the schools and for safeguarding 
the health of the pupils. In a word, subject to the ap- 
proval of a majority of the patrons, and in a fashion to 
the authority of the state board of education, the local 
boards exercise complete control within their respective 
districts. However, this control, as we shall see, is not 
of a kind to be helpful in the solution of daily school 
problems, nor is it effective as a stimulus to improve- 
ment. 

In the foregoing description three facts stand out 
prominently: First, the state board of education, the 
commissioner of education, the county school commission, 
and the county superintendent all represent the state. 
The governor appoints them all, and the state pays their 
salaries and contingent expenses. On the other hand, 
the district school committee or the local board of educa- 
tion is elected by the people and thus represents the 
people of the districts concerned. Second, while the 
state board of education, the county school commission, 
and the county superintendent have large powers, they 
have no way of making really effective use of them; they 
can issue regulations, but do not have the machinery 
needed to enforce them. The power of direct action 
belongs ahnost wholly to the district school committee 



lo PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

or local board of education, both of which thus possess 
preponderant influence over the schools. Third, the 
number of local boards and board members is very large. 
The white schools are governed by 292 district school 
committees, with a membership of 876, and by 44 boards 
of education, with a membership of 259; the colored 
schools are in the hands of 88 district school committees, 
with a membership of 264. Delaware, with three coun- 
ties, thus has 424 local school committees or boards of 
education, and a total of 1,399 ^ocal administrative offi- 
cials. 

The schools over which these boards preside are of two 
grades — elementary schools, grades i to 8, inclusive, and 
high schools. Of the 44 incorporated districts 29 sup- 
port high schools. Besides these 29 high schools, there 
were, in 1917-18, 336 elementary white schools and 90 
^ elementary colored schools. The white schools alto- 
gether employed 620 teachers and enrolled 19,684 pupils, 
with an average daily attendance of 1 2 ,453 . The colored 
^^ schools employed 114 teachers and enrolled 4,479 pupils, 
with an average daily attendance of 2,093. Altogether 
there were, thus, outside of Wilmington, in 191 7-18, 734 
teachers and an enrollment of 24,163 pupils, with an 
average daily attendance of 14,546. 

The total current expenditures on white schools during 
the school year 191 7-18, exclusive of Wilmington, was 
$400,126.37, which is equal to a current per pupil expen- 
diture on total enrollment of $20.33, 3,nd on average 
daily attendance of $32.13. The total current expendi- 



PRESENT SCHOOL SYSTEM ii 

ture on colored schools was $37,126.81, or a current 
per pupil expenditure on total enrollment of $8.29, and 
on average daily attendance of $17.75. The combined 
current expenditure was, therefore, $437,253.18, which 
is a current per pupil expenditure on total enrollment 
of $18.10, and on average daily attendance of $30.06.^ 
*See Appendix, Table XIII, page io8a. 



m. STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION 

AND 

COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION 

IN PLACING at the head of its system of public 
education a state board of education and a commis- 
sioner of education, Delaware follows the most ap- 
proved practice. Education has advanced most satis- 
factorily in those states in which a judicious combination 
of state and local authority has been effected. A proper 
degree of local responsibility insures the interest, effort, 
and pride of the community in which the school is located; 
the influence of the state makes for unity of design and 
for uniformity in standards and opportunity. 

Delaware has had a state board of education since 
1875. From 1875 to 191 1 the board was ex-officio, com^ 
posed usually of the governor, the president of Delaware 
College, the secretary of state, and the state auditor. 
It had up to 1898 little authority and performed only a 
few specified routine duties. In 1898 larger powers 
were conferred but without materially changing the situ- 
ation. In fact, ex-officio boards of this character have 
perhaps nowhere functioned effectively. As now coii- 
stituted the state board of education has existed only 
since 191 1, it has had the assistance of a commissioner 



STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION 13 

of education only since 1913.^ In its present form, there- 
fore, the Delaware state board of education is of rfecent 
origin. 

In these five years, the board has initiated a number of 
significant activities. A state course of study has been 
published; high schools have been classified; a new text- 
book list has been adopted; better training for teachers 
has been encouraged through opening a summer school 
for teachers at Delaware College and through securing 
state aid for teachers who attend summer schools; a 
statewide campaign for better school attendance has 
been carried on; a campaign has been conducted for the 
consolidation of schools and for state aid for consolidated 
schools; and a comprehensive program of school legisla- 
tion wag presented to the general assembly of 191 7. The 
last year has been devoted particularly to the formula- 
tion of new rules for the certification of teachers, to put- 
ting into effect the law on the importation of dependent 
children, and to appl5dng the Smith-Hughes law. Most 
of these measures are, however, so new that their benefi- 
cial effects are not yet evident. Thus, for example, the 
campaign for consolidation has so far resulted in a single 
instance of consolidation — the Caesar Rodney School. 
Naturally enough, in the brief period under considera- 
tion, the board has not been able to make use of all its 
powers. It has not, for instance, prescribed rules and 



^The office of commigBioner of education was created in 1875 under the 
title of state superintendent; it was, however, abolished in 1887 and not 
restored until 1913. 



14 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

regulations for the sanitary equipment and inspection 
of school buildings. 

Time alone will not, however, make the present board 
an effective body. It is not, as a matter of fact, con- 
stituted nor are its functions defined on sound educational 
or administrative principles. A board of education 
meeting three or four times a year for a few hours at a 
time cannot be charged with originating or itself execut- 
ing policies, nor can it undertake to decide and supervise 
matters of detail. These are functions and duties which 
properly belong to a paid expert executive — a commis- 
sioner of education — ^who devotes all his energy and time, 
to his work. There is, however, another type of public 
service, in a high degree valuable and important, which 
a state board can perform, viz., it can represent the 
people in large matters of educational policy, keeping 
the viewpoint of the layman and the needs of the people 
before the executive. The state board thus becomes a 
criticizing, suggesting, and reviewing body which its ex- 
pert executive must consult and convince in all matters 
of moment. Such a board cannot take the place of or 
supersede its executive officer, but it can make sure that 
he does his duty and it can enormously assist him with 
suggestion and counsel. 

A lay board, whose members have been selected by 
the governor with these ends in view, is likely to prove 
the most effective instrument for this purpose. We have 
already briefly touched on the objection to an ex-officio 
board — ^its members may or may not be really interested 



STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION 15 

in education; in any event, their main responsibility lies 
elsewhere, and they are brought together only, as it were, 
accidentally, for brief terms, to act on educational mat- 
ters. The present board is an imdoubted improvement 
on the ex-offido board; it is, however, open to criticism 
on the ground that, containing, as it does, professional 
members, it is liable to regard questions of policy from an 
academic rather than the popular point of view. 

The present situation is also defective in consequence 
of a confusion between powers properly belonging to the 
state board and powers properly belonging to its execu- 
tive officer, the state commissioner of education. This 
confusion is due to the fact that the state board of educa- 
tion obtained many of its present powers during the per- 
iod when there was no state superintendent. When the 
office of superintendent was restored in 19 13, the power 
of appointment was vested in the governor with the con- 
sent of the senate. The board retained the powers pre- 
viously assigned to it; while the commissioner of educa- 
tion became its ex-officio secretary, he bears no other legal 
relation to it nor is he responsible to the state board, al- 
though that board prescribes his duties. We therefore 
have this incongruous situation: On the one hand, a 
state board with large powers and duties, but without a 
fully responsible executive; on the other hand, a commis- 
sioner of education, who is an executive without real re- 
sponsibility or power. Fortunately, the state board and 
the commissioner have in most instances thus far worked 
in harmony. Nevertheless, the law obviously requires 



i6 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

revision. The state board of education should select a 
commissioner of education, who should be its responsible 
executive, with full powers of leadership, while the board 
itself should be vested with powers of suggestion, review, 
and final approval. 

We have called attention to the fact that the state 
board lacks effective means of enforcing its authority. 
The state auditor, in settling the accounts of school offi- 
cers, and the state treasurer, the trustee of the school 
fund, in making the apportionments of state moneys are 
indeed supposed to foUow the rules and decisions of the 
state board of education, but the authority and influence 
of these officers can be and are at best only nominal. They 
can do little beyond inquiring (i) whether the schools 
have been in session the minimum of 140 days, and (2) 
whether the minimum tax of $100 has been raised. The 
auditor's settlement, coming at the close of the school 
year, cannot affect the past; the state apportionment by 
the state treasurer and the trustee of the school fund is 
made at the beginning of the school year, and promises 
for the future are, almost without exception, accepted in 
good faith. In practice, therefore, the state board of 
education has no way of enforcing the school laws or its 
regulations; indeed, it has only nominal control over the 
county superintendents, and none at all over the county 
school commissions. Thus, in effect, the state board 
of education, with all its powers, becomes little more than 
an advisory body. A school officer, for example, may 
commit malfeasance — the state board is powerless to 



STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION 17 

act. Teachers may be employed without licenses — the 
state board can only protest. Plans for a new school 
building may run counter to the principles of good school 
architecture, or a schoolhouse and outbuildings may 
endanger the health of pupils — the state board can only 
counsel. Clearly, the state department of education 
should possess the power to enforce the school law and 
such regulations and decisions as the law empowers the 
department to make. 

To this end the state department requires financial 
support on a proper basis. The sum of $2,000 appropri- 
ated by the state annually would be insufficient even for 
the contingent expenses of the state board, but out of this 
sum the board pays part of the incidental expenses of the 
three county superintendents and also supplements the 
expense fund of the commissioner of education, itself 
only $300 a year. In consequence, the state depart- 
ment of education has not now and never has had proper 
quarters or an adequate clerical force. Its office force 
is usually limited to a single stenographer. For years it 
has occupied two or three small office rooms, which have 
to be vacated each second winter for months at a time, 
when the general assembly meets. The equipment con- 
sists of two flat top tables, two office desks, and a few 
chairs; the board owns two typewriters, a motor-driven 
mimeograph, one large and one small filing cabinet, and 
a bookcase. 

It is therefore not surprising that such records, docu- 
ments, and summarized information as would throw light 



i8 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

on the growth and development of the system and on the 
present condition of the schools are almost entirely lack- 
ing. The state board has simply never been in position 
to collect and file such records and documents or to make 
the necessary tabulations. By dint of effort, the board 
succeeds at intervals of about ten years in preparing 
and publishing a more or less comprehensive report, but 
the data contained in these reports, given, as they are, 
in detail, without summaries, are of little use. Strange 
as it may seem, the board does not even possess a com- 
plete file of its own reports nor are these to be found in 
the archives of the state. The public school system of 
Delaware is consequently uninformed about itself and 
public school officials lack the data essential to wise plan- 
ning and effective administration. 

Elaborate quarters and a large budget are not called 
for, but the state board and the commissioner of educa- 
tion should be provided with permanent quarters and 
equipment adapted to their needs. The office force 
should include at least two stenographers for correspon- 
dence, one record and filing clerk, and a statistical assist- 
ant. 

To conclude, changes are obviously required in the 
state department of education if it is to become efficient. 
Appointments to the state board should be limited to 
lajmien. The state board, not the governor, should 
choose the commissioner of education. The commis- 
sioner of education should be the board's responsible ex- 
ecutive. The board should be in position to enforce the 



STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION 19 

school laws of the state and its own rules and regulations. 
The commissioner of education, chosen by the board, 
should be vested with full power of leadership, and the 
board, as such, should exercise its power through sugges- 
tion, review, and final approval. Finally, the financial 
support of the department should be increased suflS- 
dently to provide ample quarters, an adequate office 
force, the necessary contingent expenses, including the 
expense connected with the publication and distribution 
of an annual report and occasional special reports. 



IV. COUNTY SCHOOL COMMISSIONS AND 
COUNTY SUPERINTENDENTS 

EACH of the three Delaware counties has a county 
school commission created by statute in 1898. 
The commission has three members, appointed 
by the governor for terms of three years. Not more 
than two of the three may be of the same political party. 
As a rule, only laymen are appointed. The state pays a 
maximimi of $100 a year to each member for his services 
and traveling expenses. Four regular meetings are 
required annually and there are also occasional special 
meetings. One member acts as secretary, but the 
minutes are fragmentary and incomplete. Like the 
state board of education, as we shall see, the county 
school commission has, as far as the language of the law 
goes, large powers. But, as in the case of the state 
board, these powers are largely nominal. 

To illustrate: Subject to the regulations and oversight 
of the state board of education, the county school com- 
mission is charged with the supervision of all the schools 
of the county — ^white and colored. To this end, the 
county school commission is authorized to visit the 
schools, observe their work, and question teachers con- 
cerning methods of instruction and discipline. It is 



COUNTY SCHOOL COMMISSIONS 21 

plainly impossible for busy laymen themselves to give 
much time to visiting schools, or to pass judgment on the 
technique of instruction. The commissioners are wise 
enough not to attempt it. The county commission 
could supervise only through paid supervisors, but they 
have neither money nor authority to employ them. 
Again, the state has quite properly authorized the county 
school commission to act as a sanitary board over school 
property. Although a lay commission may not be ex- 
pected to know in detail the principles of good school 
architecture, its judgment on sanitary conditions and 
on needed repairs and improvements is generally sound. 
But in this field, where the county commission might give 
valuable service, it is rendered almost impotent, since 
it has no direct power to enforce its decisions. 

Thus vested, on the one hand, with duties which, 
from their very character, lay commissions cannot per- 
form, and, on the other hand, deprived of the power 
of direct action in the field where they might do a real 
service, the county school commissions settle into a per- 
fimctory existence. At intervals, questions about the 
boundaries between school districts arise for settlement; 
now and then disputes between the officers of different 
districts, or between officials and teachers, come up for 
decision. Conferences are also occasionally held with 
the district committees of colored schools as to how best 
to apply the $i,ocmd which the state occasionally appropri- 
ates to each county for the special improvement of school- 
houses for colored children. Once a year the commis- 



22 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

sioners are expected to make a tour of a week or ten days, 
with the county superintendent, to inspect school grounds 
and buildings so as to make recommendations for im- 
proving them to the district boards. Some time is also 
given to conferences with the county superintendent. 
These activities are well enough in themselves, but after 
all they are not fundamental. It is therefore clear that 
the county school commissioners are not in position to 
assume leadership in county educational affairs, or to 
exert a positive, unifying, and progressive influence on 
the development of the schools. 

The actual head of the county's educational organi- 
zation is the county superintendent — an official who, curi- 
ously enough, is practically independent of the county 
board. He is, in fact, a state officer, for he is responsible 
to the governor, by whom, with the consent of the senate, 
he is appointed. The law, indeed, requires the county 
superintendent to attend the meetings of the county 
commission and to make such reports as it may request, 
Just as it authorizes the county commission "to confer 
with him and aid him concerning the methods and sys- 
tems which he has adopted or desires to introduce into 
the schools." On neither side is this relationship vital. 
The county superintendent is really closer to the state 
board of education, for he is required to attend its 
meetings, to make such reports as it may require, and to 
execute any reasonable request it may make. 

The county superintendents hold office for two years; 
the salary paid by the state has recently been increased 




^ 



COUNTY SCHOOL COMMISSIONS 23 

from $1,200 to $1,600, The state contributes about $500 
annually toward traveling expenses, and from the state 
board of education they receive a small sum for contin- 
gencies — ^utilized mainly in enforcing the compulsory 
attendance law. These sums are altogether inadequate, 
particularly in view of the fact that superintendents are 
compelled to buy and maintain their own conveyances. 
Office accommodations are largely a matter of chance. 
The superintendent of New Castle County has an office, 
with the school commission, in the county building at 
Wilmington; the state provides the superintendent and 
commissioners of Kent County with an office in the capitol 
building, at Dover; while the superintendent and com- 
missioners of Sussex County have only an improvised 
office which the superintendent has fitted up in his home, 
mostly at his own expense. The superintendents have 
no regular assistance of any kind. 

The county superintendent in Delaware is a supervis- 
ory and not an administrative officer. He has nothing 
to do with business and administrative school mat- 
ters, except as the local school officials voluntarily appeal 
to him for help in finding a teacher or for advice regard- 
ing the erection of a new building, repairs or improve- 
ments. This sort of consultation is becoming more 
frequent. 

The principal duties of the county superintendent as a 
supervising official are these: (i) the certification of 
teachers; (2) the supervision of instruction; (3) the im- 
provement of teachers in service; (4) the enforcement of 



24 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

the compulsory school attendance law; (5) the collec- 
tion of school statistics; and (6) the development of 
public educational sentiment. Unfortunately for our 
purposes, two of the three county superintendents took 
office as late as July, 191 8. Our description of the work 
of the superintendents applies therefore mainly to the 
superintendent who has been in the service almost 
a decade. 

While the state board of education prescribes the con- 
ditions on which certificates are issued, the county 
superintendents conduct the examinations, and, until 
this year, read and graded all the papers of candidates 
in their respective counties. For example, the superin- 
tendent of Sussex County in 191 7-18 examined and 
read, with very little outside assistance, the papers 
of 196 white and 10 colored teachers; 62 of the white 
teachers were examined twice in certain subjects. Simi- 
lar data are not available from the other counties, but 
the numbers examined were probably not so large. The 
reading and grading of papers in such numbers is a gruel- 
ing and time consuming task, of which the superintend- 
ents should be relieved — in the first place, because they 
can employ their time to better advantage, and, again, 
because they should neither be exposed to the pressure 
frequently exerted to secure certificates for local candi- 
dates, nor handicapped by the opposition often aroused 
when local candidates fail. But there is a fundamental 
objection to the present practice. The certification of 
teachers is a state function, and as long as there are four 



COUNTY SCHOOL COMMISSIONS 25 

different portals to teaching — the state board and the 
three county superintendents — uniformity in standards 
cannot be obtained. 

Again, the law requires the county superintendent to 
spend with each teacher at least two hours annually, 
observing her work and assisting her, "to the end that 
improved methods of instruction and discipline are intro- 
duced in the schools." It is, however, hxmianly im- 
possible for a single superintendent to fulfill more than 
the letter of this law. New Castle County has, for ex- 
ample, a total of 197 teachers, 168 white and 29 colored, 
scattered over an area of 425 square miles.^ Kent 
County has a total of 235 teachers, 191 white and 44 
colored, scattered over 617 square miles; and Sussex 
County, a total of 302, 261 white and 41 colored, scat- 
tered over 913 square miles. In Sussex County the 
most the superintendent can do is to visit all the teachers, 
white and colored, once a year for an hour to an hour 
and a half, with an occasional short return visit when 
there is special need. To systematize observations and 
suggestions, the state board has prepared a blank cover- 
ing a number of vital points in instruction — the use 
of school time, the care of children's health and com- 
fort, etc. Such a blank is valuable both in directing 
the superintendents and in making clear to the teachers 
what is expected of them. The reports which the super- 
intendents have on file, and the consolidated monthly 
reports to the state board, show that the superintendents 

^This allows 10 square miles for Wilmington. 



26 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

are earnest and conscientious in endeavoring to carry 
out the law. But it is evident that the amount of atten- 
tion that the superintendent can give to any one teacher 
is too brief to be very helpful. At most, he can make a 
few pertinent suggestions, leaving the teacher to apply 
them as best she can. 

Other common and well tried means of improving 
teachers in service are employed — teachers' institutes, 
group meetings at convenient centers during the school 
year; and, more recently, the six weeks summer school, at 
state expense. While these devices are all valuable 
they are far inferior to personal supervision, of which, 
as we have seen, there is in Delaware relatively little. 
Without proper supervision, the teacher is left unaided 
and alone to face the problems and difficulties of school 
management. In fact, good supervision is so important 
that, whatever else may be done — the school year 
lengthened, better school buildings and more generous 
equipment supplied, salaries raised, etc. — little improve- 
ment in instruction can be expected in the rural districts 
of Delaware, until intelligent supervision is provided. 
To this point we shall have occasion to return again and 
again in succeeding chapters. 

Of the remaining duties of the county superintendent, 
the most important is the enforcement of the compulsory 
school attendance law — a responsibility which he divides 
with the district school committee and local boards of 
education. The law permits district committees and 
boards of education to appoint attendance officers^ 



COUNTY SCHOOL COMMISSIONS 27 

but there is not a single attendance officer in all Dela- 
ware. In the absence of regular attendance officers, 
the law authorizes the clerk of the district committee 
or board of education to act in that capacity. Natur- 
ally, the school clerks, with rare exceptions, do nothing, 
for officials already otherwise occupied cannot be ex- 
pected to perform such services. The entire responsi- 
bility thus ultimately falls on the superintendents. 
Yet, without the necessary information, without clerical 
assistance, without a developed public sentiment, it is 
impossible for them to accomplish much. Obviously, 
a complete and up to date school census, that is, a list 
of all the children of compulsory school age, is the 
primary requisite. But Delaware takes no such census. 
The school clerk is supposed to report to the superintend- 
ent at the beginning of the school year all children of com- 
pulsory school age in his district, for which service he 
receives a dollar for each 100 names or fraction thereof. 
But, even after they have been corrected and supple- 
mented by the teachers, these lists are incomplete and 
unreliable. Nevertheless, they furnish all the informa- 
tion that superintendents possess. It is therefore not 
surprising to find that large numbers of children are ir- 
regular in attendance. The separate school districts 
are too small to employ attendance officers, school clerks 
cannot be expected to enforce the law, and the county 
superintendents have neither the necessary information 
nor the necessary time. It should, however, be added 
that under the leadership of the commissioner of educa- 



28 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

tion the county superintendents have recently been ex- 
ceedingly active in arousing the public to the importance 
of more regular school attendance. 

Finally, schools cannot be properly managed except 
in the light of full knowledge of educational conditions 
and needs. The school law of Delaware, recognizing 
this fact, specifically charges the county superintendents 
with the collection of school statistics. In consequence, 
there are on file in the office of each superintendent the 
names of the clerks of the several school districts, a list 
of the teachers employed, of the children of compulsory 
school age, as far as known, and a record of the last visit 
to each school. These data, important as far as they 
go, are far from covering the ground. There are no 
reports on enrollment and attendance, on ages and the 
grades of children, promotion and non-promotion, no 
examination records, and no complete financial state- 
ment. In short, the county superintendents are with- 
out definite, organized information on most of the import- 
ant aspects of school work. The public is of course 
uninformed, for the superintendent issues no annual re- 
port, although two superintendents have in recent years 
made special reports on school buildings in New Castle 
and Kent counties. The failure of the superintendents 
to collect and file the information that should be found in 
such offices is due partly to the fact that they are super- 
visory and not administrative officers, partly to the fact 
that they are without clerical assistance and without 
filing facilities. Meanwhile, the information in question 



COUNTY SCHOOL COMMISSIONS 29 

is essential to good supervision and effective administra- 
tion. 

To conclude: The county school commissions do not 
occupy a position of leadership in county educational 
affairs and cannot exert a decisive control over the 
schools. The county superintendents are practically 
the sole centers of county-wide influence. Yet even they 
are at present in no position to effect any marked im- 
provement in public education. The relations between 
the county school coromission and the county super- 
intendent must be revised, the powers of both greatly 
increased, and means of enforcing a progressive school 
policy provided. 



V. DISTRICT SCHOOL COMMITTEES AND 
BOARDS OF EDUCATION 

THE district school committees and local boards 
of education are the bodies most closely in con- 
tact with the schools. The distinction between 
them is not fundamental. The former has jurisdic- 
tion over a rural district, which usually contains a single 
one room school; the latter, over an incorporated district, 
usually a town or city, although there are a few incorporat- 
ed districts in the open country. The district school com- 
mittees operate under the general school laws of the 
state, and are uniformly composed of a clerk and two 
members, elected by the people for terms of three years. 
Boards of education, on the other hand, while subject 
to certain sections of the general school law, usually 
operate under separate special acts. While these acts 
have some features in common, no two are exactly 
alike. Boards of education thus differ more or less as to 
membership, mode of election, terms of office, powers 
to acquire and hold property for educational purposes, 
to raise money, etc. 

Local committees and local boards of education might, 
under a proper system, be important factors in develop- 
ing good schools. But the power of the local school 

30 



COMMITTEES AND BOARDS OF EDUCATION 31 

authorities is so limited that they can scarcely do more 
than keep the schools alive; to advance their efficiency 
is next to impossible. The reasons are plain. The law 
imposes on local committees and boards various duties 
in the way of general direction, inspection, and supervi- 
sion. For example, they are expected to (a) prescribe 
rules and regulations for the conduct of the schools, (b) 
prescribe rules and regulations safeguarding and pro- 
moting the health of the children, (c) see that all children 
are instructed in physiology and hygiene, (d) see that the 
constitutions of the United States and Delaware are 
taught, (e) see that each school is provided with a flag 
and with maps of the United States and Delaware, 
(f) visit the schools at least four times a year, etc. Lay 
school officials, mostly without executive assistance, 
cannot themselves perform such duties. Meanwhile, 
the local units are, with rare exceptions, too small and 
therefore financially too weak to employ as their agents 
superintendents or supervisors- who might administer 
and oversee. 

Again, the powers of local school authorities over busi- 
ness matters — power to provide grounds, buildings, 
and equipment, employ teachers, fijc their salaries, dis- 
miss them, etc. — are apparent rather than real. Power 
really rests with the voters of the district. For example, 
the district school committees cannot actually engage a 
teacher, cannot provide school grounds and buildings, 
without a majority vote of the district. On their own 
initiative, they can levy and collect annually only $100; 



32 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

the voters of the district must sanction every additional 
cent. Thus a popular referendum must be taken as to 
whether a teacher's salary shall be increased from $45 
to $50 a month, whether a heater shall be purchased, or 
the schoolhouse repainted. The necessity of submitting 
to popular vote almost every detail of school manage- 
ment involving expenditure results in educational paraly- 
sis. Here and there the members of a district committee 
carry on a continuous campaign among their neighbors 
for greater liberality in school expenditure. But most 
committees are content to follow the line of least re- 
sistance — that is, they conduct the schools at a minimum 
cost to the taxpayers. Active men, capable of bearing 
responsibility, are reluctant to accept a post to which 
so little genuine responsibility is attached. 

Boards of education are in practically the same posi- 
tion. The amount of money they can raise is strictly 
limited. One board has power to employ only a single 
teacher. At every session of the legislature bills are 
introduced to increase the money raising power of the 
school boards, but even in such cases, the proposal usu- 
ally falls short of the pressing needs of the schools at the 
time. 

We have already called attention to the fact that a 
rural school district is usually limited to a single room 
school. As a result of this extreme subdivision, Delaware 
is divided into 292 white school districts, 88 colored dis- 
tricts, and 44 incorporated districts, a total of 424 small 
educational republics, managed by 1,399 school officials. 




p^ 






COMMITTEES AND BOARDS OF EDUCATION 33 

who, with the exception of the clerks, serve without pay. 
In creating these 424 independent educational units, one 
question has been asked: Are there enough children 
in the proposed district to warrant the building of a one 
room schoolhouse and the employment of one teacher? 
Now, a school in the full sense of the term is decidedly 
more than merely a rectangular room and a teacher. 
No district, large or small, should be a separate school 
unit imless it is large enough to perform the functions 
of a separate educational unit, that is, financially able, 
after contributing its due proportion to financing the 
educational program of the state and county, to provide 
schools of a standard elementary and high school grade, 
with adequate grounds, buildings, and equipment, well 
trained teachers, and the requisite administrative direc- 
tion and control. On this basis, not to exceed two or 
three of the largest towns in any one of the three counties 
could qualify as a separate school district. Created 
without regard to educational requirements or financial 
ability, the 424 educational units of Delaware, having 
no responsibility for the status of education in the state, 
the county, or even in the adjoining district, go their 
own way, thinking narrowly of their own educational 
needs. 

No wonder that popular interest in education is slight. 
The annual district school meeting is, with occasional 
exceptions, poorly attended, unless strong differences 
of opinion arise over the choice of a teacher or additional 
school expenditures. Otherwise, not more than one 



34 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

in six voters is present. Indeed, the usual number in 
the rural districts is about ten,* including the three school 
officials. In one instance, when the annual district 
meeting was called to order, only two patrons were pres- 
ent — a father and his son-in-law, both members of the 
district school committee; they elected a son of the 
father to the committee as clerk and then proceeded to 
employ the daughter of the father — although she had no 
certificate — as teacher for the ensuing year. 

Unsupported by anything approaching an active in- 
terest in education, the district school committees and 
local boards of education are similarly perfunctory in 
their attitude. Burdened with duties which they cannot 
discharge and without power in fields where they might 
act, what they can do is too petty to attract and hold the 
interest of strong men. The district school committees 
rarely hold more than one formal meeting a year. Such 
other business as they transact is transacted informally 
as they may happen to meet, now here, now there. 
Boards of education, with few exceptions, do little better. 
They as a rule have one or two formal meetings to fix the 
tax levy and to employ teachers, but subsequently it is 
impossible, for months at a time, to bring the members 
together, even when the matters at issue are pressing 
and important. 

Under the district system the amount of effort neces- 
sary to carry a reform of even the simplest character is 
prohibitive. Recent attempts to improve the heating 

•See Appendix, Table I, page qq. 



COMMITTEES AND 30ARDS OF EDUCATION 35 

of one room schools furnishes an example in point. The 
old method of heating these buildings is by means of an 
open stove in the center of the room. While children 
sitting near the stoves are too hot, those at a distance 
complain that they are "freezing." A modern heater 
ensures a uniform temperature in all parts of a room 
and ventilates it as well. There is no question of 
the superiority of the heater to the open stove; yet, to 
introduce heaters into all the one room schools of Dela- 
ware it would be necessary not only to convince 325 
different district school committees, but also to convince 
a majority of the voters of each district, for the question of 
purchasing a heater has to be submitted to the annual 
district meeting. Faced by this impossible task, it is 
not surprising that the county superintendents have 
labored for years to introduce heaters into the rural dis- 
tricts, with only partial success. Under centralized 
control, it would be necessary to convince only a single 
board; if the board's decision were favorable, heaters 
would be promptly introduced, as needed, everywhere. 

Again, under the district system, difficult as it is to 
achieve a progressive end, it is still more difficult to 
maintain it. To illustrate : A certain district experienced 
some ten years ago an educational revival. The people 
constructed and equipped one of the best one room school 
buildings in the state and engaged a well trained and ex- 
perienced teacher. For a time they had a good school. 
But, left to themselves, without effective general or local 
direction, interest cooled. The schoolhouse is now in 



S6 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

ill repair, and the school is very poor. At another point, 
there was constructed some ten years ago what is even 
now a fairly good school building; but the board of 
education is so hampered in the matter of providing funds 
that few well trained teachers are employed. The district 
in question has therefore a good school plant, but a poor 
school. 

The district system has other equally serious defects. 
Inevitably it makes for excessively wide differences in 
educational opportunities and in school tax burdens. 
In one district the schools are open nine months, in an- 
other, eight months, and in still another, seven months.^ 
Likewise, in one district the school poll tax is $2.00, in 
another, $6.00.^ Again, the property school tax in one 
district is 7 cents on the hundred dollars, and in another 
district, 100 cents.' Thus inequality reigns where 
sound policy requires something approaching uniformity. 
The truth is the district system represents pioneer con- 
ditions. It goes back to the time when an isolated 
group, desiring some sort of school for its children, 
pooled its meager resources in order to establish a neigh- 
borhood school. Increased wealth, larger numbers, 
improved communication, more complicated educational 
requirements render the district system obsolete. 

A qualified county system should displace the present 
district system. At its head should be a county board 

^See Appendix, Table II, page 99. 
'See Appendix, Table III, page 100. 
'See Appendix, Table IV, page loi. 



COMMITTEES AND BOARDS OF EDUCATION 37 

of education, elected by the people, vested with large 
powers and directed to establish and to maintain efficient 
schools. The entire county, with exceptions to be noted, 
would thus become the unit, all the county schools 
forming a system, in the development of which intelli- 
gence and design may be employed. With the total 
county school tax, plus the state dividends, something 
like statesmanship may be exercised in locating, erecting, 
equipping, and consohdating schools. Educational op- 
portimities can thus be more or less equalized throughout 
the county. The revenues of the board and the size of 
its field would warrant the employment of a competent 
staff, consisting of county superintendent, supervisors, 
attendance officer, and clerks. County education thus 
organized would attract to the county board the ablest 
and most public spirited citizens of the community. 

A county system of this type would not, however, 
involve the abolition of district school committees and 
local boards of education; these local school officials could 
still be utilized, though with modified powers and duties. 
The more populous and wealthy centers should be erected 
into separate school districts, provided they fulfill certain 
specified requirements as to the grade of schools to be 
maintained, the grounds, buildings, and equipment to 
be provided, the preparation of the teachers to be em- 
ployed, and the administrative direction and supervision 
to be supplied. Such a county system would thus per- 
mit the larger towns to enjoy local educational autonomy, 
and at the same time secure to the smaller towns, villages, 



38 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

and the open country the benefits of a centralized or- 
ganization. 

In conclusion, it is only fair to remind ourselves that 
the district school committees and local boards of edu- 
cation should not be held to too strict an account if 
they have not performed effectively the duties imposed 
upon them, and have permitted the schools, as a rule, 
to eke out a miserable existence. The fault rests with 
the system under which they work — that is, with the 
state. Delaware does not conceive of education as a 
general function to be exercised and directed by the 
state. It is viewed, rather, as a local concern. Indeed, 
the term ''free public schools" has never meant in Dela- 
ware and does not now mean much more than that 
separate communities are permitted to provide schools 
at limited public expense. The state has enacted certain 
general laws; it has created the above mentioned execu- 
tive and supervisory boards; it pays the tuition of certain 
pupils in graded schools, and apportions a small sum to 
each committee or local board for each teacher employed. 
But its general laws are narrow in scope and ineffec- 
tively applied; its executive and supervisory boards 
have no way of enforcing large and expanding school 
policies; its financial requirement of the separate districts 
does not ensure decent schools. Too much is left to the 
unconstrained initiative of small local units. The state 
has not frankly recognized its responsibility for framing an 
adequate policy and creating the organs, state and local, 
through which a soundpolicymaybeprogressively realized* 



VI. THE TEACHERS 

THE schools of Delaware, like those of other states, 
require teachers of different t3rpes: one t)^e for 
the graded city school, a somewhat different type 
for the ungraded rural school, still other types for special 
subjects in elementary and high schools — such subjects, 
for example, as physical training, science, Latin, manual 
training, etc. Differentiation of function should imply 
speciaHzation in training. That is, those who are to 
teach different subjects should be differently trained. 
The length and character of the training required by each 
of the several necessary types are not easy to fix. Yet it 
is commonly understood as the goal to be aimed at that 
teachers in the elementary schools, city or country, 
ought to possess high school education, followed by two 
years of normal school training; and that high school 
teachers should have passed through college with a 
certain amount of special training in the particular 
branches they are engaged in teaching. 

Delaware issues four kinds of teacher certificates: (i) 
primary and kindergarten certificates, valid in the kinder- 
garten and the first three grades of the elementary school; 
(2) elementary certificates, limited and permanent, valid 
in the elementary schools; (3) high school certificates, 

39 



40 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

limited and permanent, valid in the high schools; and 
(4) normal and college graduate certificates, limited and 
permanent, valid in all schools of the state. Besides 
these regular certificates, permits or provisional certi- 
ficates are used in emergencies. The various certificates 
require different degrees of academic and professional 
preparation. 

As nearly as can be ascertained, there are now in Dela- 
ware 734 teachers. Cards asking for information about 
the certificates held, training or preparation, etc., were 
addressed to all teachers, but returns have been re- 
ceived from only 651, or approximately 90 per cent, of 
the number. Nevertheless, on the basis of data thus 
obtained it appears that of the 651 teachers reporting, 
only 127 or 20 per cent, hold normal or college graduate 
certificates, 80 hold provisional certificates, and 358 
limited elementary certificates; that is, 67 per cent, hold 
the very lowest grade of certificate issued.'^ 

This is not surprising in view of the preparation or 
training disclosed. Of the teachers reporting, 81 are 
classified as high school teachers. The preparation of 
these high school teachers ranges from two years spent 
as student in a high school to a full college course; only 
43 per cent, of them can be regarded as qualified to imder- 
take high school instruction. The elementary teachers 
in incorporated districts are even less weU equipped. 
Only 43 out of the 190 reporting, or 23 per cent., reach an 
acceptable standard of training, while 84, or 44 per cent., 
*See Appendix, Table V, page 102. 



THE TEACHERS 41 

have not completed a high school course. Teachers in 
the rural elementary schools make a still more unfavor- 
able showing. In general, they are products of rural 
schools, and of high schools which give one, two, or 
three year courses. Of the 291 reporting, only 18, or 
6 per cent., have had full normal training or its equiva- 
lent, 42, or 14 per cent., have never advanced beyond the 
grades, and 139 others, or 48 per cent., have had only 
part of a high school course. Of the elementary teachers, 
the colored teachers appear to be relatively the best pre- 
pared; 40 out of 89 reporting, or 45 per cent., are normal 
school graduates or have had part or all of a college 
course.* Figure i shows the proportion of teachers weU 
prepared, and the proportion ill prepared. 

The teachers of Delaware are not only deficient in re- 
spect to training, they are in the main immature. Of 
the 651 reporting, 152, or 23 per cent., are under twenty- 
one years of age.^ Nor is the number of older teachers 
large; only 27 are fifty years of age and older. 

As is generally true throughout the country, the teach- 
ers are mostly new to the system. Good school work 
involves a knowledge of community needs. Newcom- 
ers are at a disadvantage in this respect. Of the 
651 teachers under consideration, 160, or 25 per cent., 
entered the system this year. Only 38 per cent, of the 
entire number of those regarding whom we obtained in- 



*See Appendix, Table VI, page 103. 
•Sec Appendix, Table VII, page 104. 



42 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

Figure i 
Peepaxahon of Teachers, 1918-19 

High Schools Incorporated Schools 




Rural Schools 



Colored Schools 




THE TEACHERS 43 

formation have been in the system five years or more.* 
Conditions may be somewhat unusual at this time, but 
in any case the annual loss is large. The number of new 
white teachers (including Wilmington) in 1916-17 is 
stated to have been 158, 35 in the incorporated and 123 
in the rural districts. Again, the tenure of teachers al- 
ready in the system is short and shifting of position is 
common. While 160 of the present teaching force are 
new, 245 hold new positions, 109 are in their second year 
in the same position, and 68 in their third.^ Thus, within 
the system there is constant flux, unfavorable to con- 
tinuity of instruction. 

That Delaware has a body of teachers so poorly trained 
and so unstable is due in part at least to two factors : low 
annual salaries and inadequate provisions for teacher 
training, particularly for the training of elementary 
teachers. The present monthly salaries of teachers in 
Delaware are not bad, there having been a notable in- 
crease even over 1917-1918. Thus the median monthly 
wage of high school teachers — all principals except 8 be- 
ing included — is $90, approximately half receiving more 
and half receiving less; of elementary teachers in in- 
corporated districts, $65; of rural teachers, $60; and of 
colored teachers, $45. But the school term is so brief 
that annual salaries are low even though monthly salaries 
are fair. As few schools in incorporated districts run 
more than nine months, high school teachers receive a 

'See Appendix, Table VIII, page 105. 
*See Appendix, Table IX, page 106. . 



44 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

median annual salary of approximately $8io, elementary 
teachers a median annual salary of about $585. Rural 
teachers receive a median annual salary of approximately 
$420. The median annual salary of colored teachers is 
approximately $315.^ These salaries will not attract well 
trained and experienced teachers. 

Equally fundamental is the problem of training teach- 
ers. From the establishment of public schools in 1829 
until 1903 prospective teachers were left to their own re- 
sources to get such training as they could. After 1903 
and until 191 5, an annual appropriation ranging from 
$1,000 to $1,500 was made to each of the counties to pay 
the tuition of prospective teachers in the normal schools 
of other states. A small number of normal school grad- 
uates has been thus obtained. With the opening of the 
Women's College of Delaware, this appropriation lapsed, 
on the assumption that this institution would undertake 
teacher training. 

The Women's College now offers two courses in educa- 
tion: one, a four year course for high school teachers, 
the other, a two year course for elementary teachers. 
The enrollment in these courses is now as follows: 



Four year course — 




Two year course — 




Seniors 


3 






Juniors 


S 






Sophomores 


4 


First Year 





Freshmen 


6 


Second Year 


2 


Total 


18 


Total 


2 



^See Appendix, Table X, page io6a. 



THE TEACHERS 45 

The graduates of these courses to date number 14 (2 in 
1916, I in 1917, and 11 in 1918). Of these 2 are now 
teaching, but as this number will undoubtedly increase, 
it seems reasonable to believe that the Women's College 
of Delaware will furnish high school teachers and teachers 
of domestic arts to meet the demand. 

A similar function in respect to the training of men 
for high school posts falls naturally to Delaware College. 
We have stated that high school teachers should be 
college graduates, who have devoted part of their time to 
professional studies. This is as true of the old-line 
studies, such as mathematics, Latin, literature, history, 
science, as of the newer activities, such as agriculture and 
the industrial and household arts. To add educational 
courses where college courses in different subjects are 
already available requires additional provision only on 
the professional side. Hence, the state may confidently 
look to the Women's College and to Delaware College 
to train its high school teachers. 

Adequate provision for the training of elementary 
teachers, particularly in the rural schools, has yet to 
be made. Such provision should at this time include 
intensive instruction in the subject matter which elemen- 
tary school teachers must present, viz., arithmetic, 
penmanship, geography, United States history, drawing, 
handwork, etc., for the present graduates of the elemen- 
tary and high schools are not proficient enough in these 
fundamental subjects to begin teaching them without 
further drill and instruction. In addition, the pros- 



y 



46 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

pective teachers should receive a certain amount of 
simple, practical training in the methods of teaching the 
common school subjects and in school management. 
The work should be organized and conducted in 
sympathy with village and rural life; and for obvious 
reasons the cost to the student should be low. Between 
75 and 100 teachers trained in this way should be 
available annually, for a majority of the elementary 
teachers now in service must be gradually displaced by 
trained teachers, and a supply of trained teachers must 
also be at hand to take the place of teachers dropping 
from the system. 

Improved facilities should also be provided for 
the training of colored teachers. This, however, can be 
readily done. The State College for Colored Students 
has for some years offered a training course for colored 
teachers. Although this school emphasizes the me- 
chanical and industrial arts, 55 per cent, of its graduates, 
from 1898 to 1916, have become teachers; 40 of these 
are now teaching in the colored schools of the state.* 
The present training course is, however, far from satis- 
factory; its standards are too low, its facilities inade- 
quate. Improvement in both these respects can be 
readily effected. The immediate need reduces itself 
to an additional teacher and a small practice school. 
To what extent additional appropriations would at once 
be necessary, we are unable to state. The school has 
a fair income — $18,000. Of this sum less than 43 per 
*See Catalogue of the State College for Colored Students for 191 7. 




^ 







wsa-\ , ;: a-=rni. 






CJ 



pii 




u 



THE TEACHERS 47 

cent, goes to salaries; the accounts are not so kept as to 
make clear in detail how the remainder is expended. 
It seems, however, not improbable that a financial re- 
organization might result in such economies that the 
additional teacher now required might be carried without 
additional state appropriation. 

The upshot of the present chapter may be briefly 
summarized. Delaware is without the means of training 
teachers for its elementary schools. Its teaching corps 
is therefore largely ill trained and distinctly underpaid. 
The state cannot hope to have an adequate staff of good 
teachers in the elementary schools unless it provides 
proper facilities for their training and pays such salaries 
as competent teachers require for their support. 



VII. THE SCHOOLS AND THEIR WORK 

WE HAVE now discussed the main factors that 
determine the kind and the grade of the 
schools provided and the quality of the class- 
room instruction — organization, supervision, and teach- 
ing staff. We have learned that the organization does 
not provide the necessary central direction and control; 
that school authorities are powerless to finance good 
schools; that supervision is negligible; and that the 
teachers as a class are ill prepared, few having sufficient 
training to enable them to do satisfactory school work. 
Under these conditions, a liberal program of studies, 
up to date plants, and good teaching cannot be expected. 
As stated before, the public schools of Delaware are 
of two grades — elementary schools (grades i to 8, in- 
clusive) and high schools (grades 9 to 12, inclusive). 
WhUe the programs of elementary and high schools are 
separate, they nevertheless form a single whole. The 
present course of study for elementary schools, pre- 
scribed in 1 9 13 by the state board of education, repre- 
sents a decided advance over previous courses of study. 
The earlier courses assigned the work for the several 
grades on the basis of certain pages to be covered in the 
adopted textbooks. The 1913 course of study confined 

48 



THE SCHOOLS AND THEIR WORK 49 

itself to deiming aims and suggesting the larger topics 
of instruction and methods of treatment. Carefully 
studied and conscientiously followed, this course of 
study would undoubtedly exert a beneficial effect on 
classroom work. Unfortunately, few teachers outside of 
the larger centers are able, left to themselves as they 
are, to interpret and apply these directions. They 
need guidance and supervision and this the present 
system does not supply. The result is that prescribed 
textbooks, literally followed, constitute the course of 
study in the elementary schools of Delaware. 

The list of prescribed texts is unusually broad and 
includes both old and recent texts. In the rural schools 
the teachers, to whom the choice is left, occasionally 
select the more modern texts; in the main, however, 
the older books are retained. 

The studies prescribed for the several grades are as 
follows: 

Grade i: Reading, writing, spelling, language, number, elementary 

science (including phj^iology and hygiene, and kindness 

to animals). 
Grade 2: Reading, writing, spelling, language, number, elementary 

science (as in grade i). 
Grade 3: Reading, writing, spelling, language, arithmetic, elementary 

science (now also including oral geography). 
Grade 4: Reading, writing, spelling, language, arithmetic, geography, 

physiology and hygiene, and kindness to animals. 
Grade 5: Reading, writing, spelling, language, arithmetic, geography, 

history, physiology and hygiene, and kindness to animals. 
Grade 6: Reading, writing, spelling, language, arithmetic, geography, 

history, physiology and hygiene, and kindness to animals. 
Grade 7: Reading (may now be literature), writing, spelling, grammar, 



50 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

arithmetic, geography, history, physiology and hygiene, ele- 
mentary agriculture. 
Grade 8: Reading or literature, writing, spelling, language, arithmetic, 
geography, history, civil government, elementary agricul- 
ture. 

This program covers the general range of subjects 
usually taught in elementary schools. The place of 
prominence is given to the three R's, to geography and 
history, and to physiology and hygiene. The only 
modern subjects are elementary science in the primary 
grades and elementary agriculture in the two highest 
grades. In point of fact, however, elementary science 
is scarcely taught at all, while agriculture receives but 
scant attention. In consequence, the present elementary 
course is in effect an antiquated type of school program. 
It makes no provision for activities now regarded as 
essential to a well rounded elementary education — for 
example, handwork, physical training, music and draw- 
ing, cooking and sewing for girls, and manual work 
for boys. Of course, rural schools could not be expected 
to do justice to all these activities, but in Delaware 
they are neglected not only in rural, but almost equally 
in village and city schools. 

The present high school program was prescribed by 
the state board of education in 191 5, and is as follows: 

NtTMBER OF 
SUBJECT UNIT CREDITS 

ENGLISH 4 

(Composition, rhetoric, literature, read- 
ing of classics. Spelling and reading 
should receive one-fifth of the time) 



THE SCHOOLS AND THEIR WORK 51 

NUMBER OF 
SUBJECT tJNIT CREDITS 

UATHEUATICS 

Algebra i 

Plane geometry i 

Solid geometry i 

Arithmetic i 

HISTORY AND CIVICS 

United States history § 

United States civics and Delaware civics | 

Ancient history i 

Medieval history i 

Modem history i 

English history i 

LkNGtTAGES 

Latin 4 

German* 2 

French 2 

NATUBAL SCIENCES 

Physics I 

Chemistry i 

General science 1 

Physical geography i 

Physiology and hygiene § 

Botany i 

Zoology . . ' i 

Biology I 

Geology i 

Astronomy i 

VOCATIONAL BRANCHES 

Domestic branches 1 

Agriculture i or i 

Manual training i 

Commercial law i 

Commercial geography § 

Shorthand 2 

Bookkeeping ^ or i 

Typewriting 2 

Penmanship i 

*By action of the state board of education, German has been dropped. 



52 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

To adapt this program to high schools of different 
sizes, three courses are outhned — one for a "ten unit" 
high school offering two years of work, one for a "fifteen 
unit" high school offering three years of work, and one 
for a "twenty unit" high school offering four years of 
work. Only four year high schools are expected to carry 
something like the full program given above. 

These different courses are noteworthy in several 
respects. In the first place, none of them requires 
Latin. Latin is an elective or an alternative. Never- 
theless, the great majority of Delaware high schools, 
whether they offer two, three, or four year courses, 
require aU first year students to take Latin. How- 
ever, the numbers dwindle rapidly from year to year. 

Secondly, as is proper in view of their significance 
in modern life, large place is given to the natural sciences, 
ten different courses being prescribed. Despite these 
liberal prescriptions, the high schools teach little science. 
Not more than three high schools in the state have any- 
thing approaching satisfactory laboratory equipment, 
with the result that the science is mostly textbook 
science. 

Thirdly, little prominence is given to the practical 
branches, such as domestic science and art for girls and 
manual training and agriculture for boys. Until last 
year there were not more than two high schools in the 
state that provided any work at all for girls in the house- 
hold arts, and only one or two attempted manual training 
and agriculture for boys. However, the acceptance 







m 



u 



THE SCHOOLS AND THEIR WORK 53 

by the state of the provisions of the Smith-Hughes law 
will doubtless emphasize in the future the vocational 
branches. It is also to be noted that physical education 
is entirely ignored. 

Finally, the state course of study prescribes the 
minimum number of teachers that may be employed — 
in a "ten unit" high school, at least one full time teacher, 
in a "fifteen unit" high school, at least one and a half 
full time teachers, and in a "twenty unit" high school, 
at least two full time teachers. When making these 
requirements, the state board of education was aware 
of the fact that satisfactory high school work cannot 
possibly be done with the minimum staff required, but 
even these inadequate requirements marked a decided 
advance. 

The high school course of study, with the exceptions 
noted, thus corresponds closely to the conventional 
scheme. Even so, it is doubtful whether there are even 
two standard four year high schools in the entire state. 
Deplorable as this situation is, it must be remembered 
that the state has never directly offered financial induce- 
ments to the development of high schools. Without 
such inducements, high schools will grow as slowly in 
the future as in the past. 

With the rural schools attempting nothing beyond 
the conventional studies, with no provisions for child 
welfare — such as warm luncheons, directed play, etc. — 
or, except recently, for community activities, it is not 
surprising that the rural schoolhouses of Delaware are 



54 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

of a very old and conventional type. The nearest 
approach in all the state to a modern one room rural 
school building is the school in District No. 34, New 
Castle County.^ This building is of cement block, 
with a basement, an attractive front porch, cloakrooms 
for both boys and girls, and a classroom of standard size. 
The walls of the classroom are tastefully decorated with 
good pictures; there are new single desks, window shades, 
slate blackboards, teacher's desk, oak glass-faced book- 
case, an organ, and a basement furnace. Yet, even 
here, there are evidences of lack of thought and knowl- 
edge. The classroom is lighted in the old-fashioned 
way, from three sides, instead of from one; there is no 
artificial lighting, so that it cannot be used in the evenings 
for community gatherings; there are no provisions for 
industrial work for boys and cooking for girls, for serving 
hot luncheons to the children, and no inside play space 
for use in inclement weather. The grounds are small 
and uneven, providing neither space for demonstration 
beds in the teaching of elementary science and agricul- 
ture, nor playgrounds equipped with appropriate play 
apparatus. 

There are practically no recent buildings in either 
Kent or New Castle County. In Sussex County, where 
a number of rural schoolhouses have been built lately, 
attempts made by the county superintendent to intro- 
duce modern features have mostly failed. District 
school committees have not yet learned that a rural 

'See illustration opposite page 8. 



THE SCHOOLS AND THEIR WORK 55 

school should be more than a single rectangular room. 
Even when the county superintendent has enlightened 
the board, it is next to impossible to get things done. 
For example, unilateral lighting — lighting from one side — 
was attempted in two or three of the new buildings, but 
the actual lighting is a queer mixture; not one of these 
new buildings is properly constructed.'^ The failure in 
Sussex County to secure proper lighting proves the 
necessity of placing in the hands of the state board of 
education final control over building plans and specifica- 
tions. 

The one room rural school plants in Delaware, of 
which there are 327, are, therefore, with rare exceptions, 
of the conventional type. Some of them have a small 
entrance porch and small cloakrooms for boys and girls,^ 
but they usually consist of a single rectangular room, 
which serves alike for school work, cloakroom, luncheon 
room, and play. The buildings are painted all colors; 
many of them are in bad repair; the lighting is almost 
always poor; about half are still heated by an ordinary 
stove; few of them have the arrangements needed for 
washing hands and faces. The seats are usually old- 
fashioned double desks; equipment is limited to a 
blackboard — generally slate — an inexpensive map of 
Delaware, a map of the United States, and a bird chart. 
The building situation in the villages having two 
and even three room schools is equally unsatisfactory. 

'See illustration opposite page 66. 
2 See illustration opposite page 32. 



56 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

The prevailing type of schoolhouse is the old two story 
rectangular building.^ Nor is the situation much better 
in the larger towns, conditions being rather worse 
in New Castle and Sussex counties than in Kent 
County. With the exception of the DuPont school — 
wliich belongs in a class by itself — there is only one town 
building in the state that may be called modern, viz., 
the new consolidated Csesar Rodney school.^ This 
building embodies an unusual number of modern ideas 
in school architecture. The classrooms are lighted 
from one side; there is a rest room for teachers, another 
for children, and an office for the principal. Two class- 
rooms, lighted from one side, end on end, divided by a 
sliding door, serve for the high school study hall, the 
school auditorium, and for commimity gatherings. The 
basement contains an attractive laboratory for the 
teaching of the household arts, with similar provisions 
for the teaching of natural science and agriculture. The 
school also has a good sized g3noinasium, with shower 
baths and locker rooms for boys and girls. The grounds 
comprise about seven acres, ample for frontal park pur- 
poses, playgrounds and athletic field, and for garden work. 
The buildings at BridgeviUe, Greenwood, and Harring- 
ton' are good structures, mainly on old lines; those at 
Smyrna,^ Dover, and Milford are fair, although the light- 

^See illustration opposite page 8. 
^See illustration opposite page 46. 
'See illustration opposite page 52. 
*See illustration opposite page 60. 



THE SCHOOLS AND THEIR WORK 57 

ing, particularly in the older parts at Milford, is bad, and 
the fire hazard considerable. Otherwise, the building 
situation in the larger towns of both New Castle 
County and Sussex County is critical. For example, 
in New Castle County the Middletown schools occupy 
the old academy building,* which, while good enough in 
its day, is wholly inadequate for present purposes; venti- 
lation and lighting are particularly bad. At New Castle 
the public schools are housed partly in the city hall, 
partly in the old United States arsenal, partly in the old 
academy building, and partly in a two room building 
(one room above the other). Not one of these buildings 
is fit for school use. Similarly at Newark, the primary 
school occupies an old brick structure with inadequate 
lighting and ventilation; the grammar grades occupy a 
building lately erected, of pleasing exterior, but bad in- 
terior, while the high school occupies the old academy 
building, long since outgrown, which is a fire trap, poorly 
ventilated and lighted. 

The situation in Sussex County is quite as critical. 
For example, at Georgetown, Laurel, and Seaford the 
buildings are old, rambling, wooden structures, which 
have been added to from time to time. Lighting and 
ventilation are bad, and the fire hazard, serious. This 
is particularly true at Seaford.- 

In certain instances the situation is complicated by 
the fact that buildings which should at this moment be 

^See illustration opposite page 66. 
'See illustration opposite page 70. 



58 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

either altered or replaced are still unpaid for. At Mil- 
ford $25,000 was borrowed when the present struc- 
ture was erected, not one penny of which has been 
liquidated. Similarly at Newark, $10,000 was bor- 
rowed when the present grammar school was built, all 
still outstanding; in fact, there has never been interest 
enough at Newark even to complete this building, the 
children being permitted year after year to walk through 
a muddy, unfinished basement. With the exceptions 
noted, the building condition in the larger towns and 
cities demands immediate action. 

Poor organization, inadequate supervision, ill prepared 
teachers, conventional programs, poor school buildings 
and equipment — these untoward conditions are all re- 
flected in the quality of the classroom instruction. In 
Delaware, as elsewhere, there is here and there a born 
teacher, who, rising above her surroundings, does good 
work; but such teachers do not redeem a situation which 
may in general terms be characterized as highly unsatis- 
factory. 

In the course of the field work, in roimd terms a hun- 
dred one room rural schools, white and colored, were vis- 
ited. Of the entire number only one could be called 
really good. The physical surroundings of this school 
at the time when the present teacher was engaged were 
altogether unfavorable. The schoolhouse, located on a 
small lot, is one of the few old stone buildings stiU stand- 
ing/ and its furnishings were of obsolete type. The new 

^See illustration opposite page 78. 



THE SCHOOLS AND THEIR WORK 59 

teacher, now in the third year of her service, persuaded 
the district school committee to give her the $10 usually 
spent at the beginning of the year to put the schoolhouse 
in order. With this $10 she employed a woman to clean 
the schoolhouse, and with the help of an interested patron 
tastefuUy calcimined the interior of the building. Later, 
an entertainnient provided funds for window shades and 
sash curtains. A carnival reseated the schoolhouse 
with single, adjustable desks. Another entertainment 
purchased an unabridged dictionary and dictionary 
holder. The local grange lent an organ. Thus, within 
two years, the entire interior of this old stone building 
was transformed into a cosy workroom. 

Perhaps a fourth of the rural schools visited give a 
good type of old-fashioned instruction. The children 
are rigorously held to their texts; no use is made of the 
experiences gained at home, on the farm, or in their en- 
vironment; nevertheless the pupils are in a fair way to 
master a substantial body of information and are receiv- 
ing what would formerly have been called a good elemen- 
tary schooling. 

The remaining rural schools are poor. The teachers, 
after one or two and occasionally three years in the neigh- 
boring high school, merely go through the motions of 
school keeping. It must be admitted that war conditions, 
as well as influenza, have this fall disorganized the 
schools to an unusual degree. Yet, so far as the work 
observed is concerned, very little difference could be per- 
ceived in the schools in question between the quality of 



6o PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

the instruction of teachers who had just entered the ser- 
vice or who had returned after an absence of some years 
and the instruction of teachers who had been continu- 
ously in service. 

Nor is the poor quality of the instruction due alto- 
gether to inadequate supervision. The professional prep- 
aration of many of these teachers is so defective that 
even good supervision will not make good teachers 
of them. The first recourse in such a situation must 
be to more and better training. Even assuming 
better training, better supervision, and consolidation as 
far as possible, the problem of such one room schools as 
remain is not easy. One teacher is compelled to handle 
in the course of the day pupils belonging to each of the 
eight elementary grades. The school day is accord- 
ingly divided into twenty or thirty recitation periods, 
varying from ten to fifteen minutes in length. Under 
such conditions, the best teachers can do little more than 
hear children recite. Now, a study of the enrollment in 
rural schools shows that a great majority of the children 
are in the lower classes, with one or two pupils, seldom 
more, in each of the uppermost two grades.^ Frequently 
one third of the entire school day is given to the instruc- 
tion of three or four advanced pupils, to the obvious neg- 
lect of the younger children. If the usual work of the 
district schools were confined to the first six grades, and 
provision made for all pupils who have completed the 

*For example, in Kent County, of a rural school enrollment in 1917-18 
of 2,495, oi^y 338j or 14 per cent., were in the seventh and eighth grades. 



THE SCHOOLS AND THEIR WORK 6i 

sixth grade to attend the nearest graded school, such 
pupils would be thrown in contact with more children of 
their own age and the rural teacher would be able to con- 
centrate her attention and energies on the children of the 
lower grades. Some such rearrangement of the work 
of the rural schools is much to be desired. The payment 
at the present time by the state of the tuition in neigh- 
boring graded schools of a limited number of pupils who 
have completed the sixth grade in their home school is a 
step in this direction. 

In respect to quality of instruction, the situation in the 
larger towns is better. Yet, the best that can be said 
of their elementary schools is that they do a fair t3^e 
of old-fashioned, formal, textbook work; the children 
master the tools of learning — reading, writing, and 
arithmetic — and devote some time to the study of phys- 
iology and hygiene, geography and history. But even in 
these schools the instruction is formal and bookish; it 
appeals almost entirely to the memory, little or nothing 
being done to train the senses, cultivate observation, or 
to develop the imagination. 

High school instruction is of the same bookish type. 
Small provisions are made for the teaching of science, the 
household and industrial arts, and, with the exception of 
one or two schools, there are neither laboratories nor 
gymnasiums. The preparation of the high school teach- 
ers is far from adequate; the high schools themselves are 
unsatisfactorily organized. The amount of instruction 
offered too frequently depends, not on the qualifications 



62 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

of the instructors or the extent of the facilities, but on 
the pride or ambition of the local board. Thus a four 
year course is sometimes given where prudence would 
hardly attempt more than two or, at most, three years' 
work; and not infrequently, two or three years of high 
school work are offered where the conditions suggest dis- 
tinctly less. 

It is not necessary in this connection to give an elabo- 
rate account of this situation or to detail the different 
measures required if it is to be improved. We need 
here emphasize only two points: (i) A state high school 
system cannot be developed if everything is left to the 
local initiative of small areas. There must be a central 
guiding and coordinating authority, which, while leaving 
abvmdant opportunity for local action, will nevertheless 
be capable in one place of restraining excessive ambition, 
in another of stimulating backward sentiment, and every- 
where of upholding creditable standards. (2) High 
schools cannot be altogether financed by local taxation. 
The problem is indeed not altogether a local problem; 
the state at large has a distinct interest in the creation 
of a sound high school system — an interest which should 
manifest itself in financial cooperation. Rapid progress 
on a sound basis would doubtless take place if these two 
suggestions were incorporated in the law — ^if , that is, the 
state defined and supervised secondary education to- 
wards the support of which it made a stimulating finan- 
cial contribution. 

The foregoing description and discussion have had ref- 



THE SCHOOLS AND THEIR WORK 63 

erence mainly to schools for white children. Conditions 
as respects colored children do not differ materially. 
The buildings are as a rule still more unsatisfactory,^ the 
instruction nowhere goes beyond the elementary grades; 
in quality there is little to choose. 

On the whole, therefore, public education in Delaware 
is at a low ebb. Public opinion is unaroused; profes- 
sional standards are as yet unformed; the state organiza- 
tion, despite certain good features, is ill jointed and in- 
effective. The laws need to be rounded out, so as to 
give the state an organization the various parts of which 
play into each other effectually; policies must be framed 
on larger lines; cooperation between the state and the 
county unit must be brought out; proper provisions for 
teacher training must be made; the state, the county and 
the local community must join in raising the larger sums 
required to sustain creditable schools, adapted to the 
needs, capacity, and opportunities of the school children 
of Delaware. 



»See illustration opposite page 84. 



Vm. ENROLLMENT AND ATTENDANCE 

THE purpose of the public school is to pass every 
child of the state through a complete elementary, 
if not a high school, course As yet no system 
of public schools has by any means realized this purpose. 
The extent to which a system succeeds is indicated (i) 
by its success in enrolling children, (2) by the regularity 
of their attendance, and (3) by their progress through 
the schools. 

The ideal school population, that is, the children that 
should be in school, would include all children from six 
to eighteen years of age inclusive. However, in Dela- 
ware, as in a number of other states, the compulsory 
period ends with the pupil's fourteenth birthday. At- 
tendance after fourteen being voluntary, it is difficult 
for the schools to hold children of high school age. 

If we could compare the number of children in Dela- 
ware in each age group between six and eighteen (inclu- 
sive) with the number of children of each age group in 
school, we should know the extent to which the schools 
reach the children of the state. Unfortunately for our 
purposes, Delaware has no school census,^ that is, no 
one knows the total nimaber of children in the state 
*The State CouncU of Defense is now taking such a census. 

64 



ENROLLMENT AND ATTENDANCE 65 

who are six years of age seven years of age, eight years 
of age, etc., so that no one knows how many children of 
each age the schools should enroll. We do, however, 
know approximately the nvmiber of children enrolled 
during the school year 191 7-18. The total enrollment, 
exclusive of Wilmington, was 24,163' — ^in incorporated 
districts, 9,084, in rural districts, 10,600, and in colored 
schools, 4,479. 

On the basis of these data, it appears that the school 
enrollment in 191 7-18 was not so large by 774 as that of 
191 2-13, for in 191 2-13, according to an unpubUshed 
report of the conmiissioner of education, the total en- 
rollment was 24,937 — in incorporated districts, 8,299, in 
rural districts, 11,769, and in colored schools, 4,869. 
This represents a total decrease of 3 per cent., for, while 
there was a gain in the incorporated districts of 9 per 
cent., there was a loss in rural districts of 10 per cent, 
and in colored schools of 8 per cent. Undoubtedly there 
were at least as many children in the state in 191 7-18 
as there were in 191 2-13; hence, the difference in the 
enrollment represents the failure of the schools to attract 
the children. War conditions in 191 7-18 ought per- 
haps to be taken into account in connection with this 
showing. 

The data in hand make clear that Delaware schools 
fail to reach large numbers of white children of certain 
age groups. For example, there were enrolled in 191 7-18 

^This includes 669 children, the estimated enrollment of schools not 
reporting, based on reports of preceding years. 



66 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

2,013 white children ten years of age.* There were 
probably in the state just as many white children eleven, 
twelve, and thirteen years of age as there were children 
ten years of age. Since the compulsory school law ex- 
tends to the fourteenth year, there ought to be in the 
schools approximately as many eleven, twelve, and 
thirteen year old children as there are ten year old chil- 
dren. But such is not the case. The numbers drop 
from 2,013 ten year olds to 1,874 eleven year olds and 
1,712 thirteen year olds. Curiously enough, the number 
of twelve year olds in attendance (1,958) is but little 
below the number of ten year olds. 

Beyond fourteen years of age, the drop is rapid. The 
white schools enrolled in 1917-18, 1,568 children fourteen 
years of age; but the number of white children fifteen 
years of age dropped to 1,114; of sixteen years of age, to 
669; of seventeen years of age, to 383; and of eighteen 
years of age and older, to 198, with 47 of unknown age. 
The white schools — to say nothing of the colored —thus 
fail to reach at least 22 per cent, of the children fourteen 
years of age, 45 per cent, of the children fifteen years of 
age, 67 per cent, of the children sixteen years of age, 81 
per cent, of the children seventeen years of age, and 90 
per cent, of the children eighteen years of age. In other 
words, taking the white schools, as a whole, only 78 
per cent, of the children are held in school long enough, 
even if they attended regularly and progressed at the usual 
rate, to complete an eighth grade education, only 55 per 

^See Appendix, Table XI, page 107. 



ENROLLMENT AND ATTENDANCE 67 

cent, long enough to complete the ninth grade, only ^^ per 
cent, long enough to complete the tenth grade, only 19 per 
cent, long enough to complete the eleventh grade, and 
only 10 per cent, long enough to complete the high school.^ 

Actually, nothing like these proportions advance so 
far. In the first place, large numbers of children of high 
school age, that is, children fifteen years of age and older, 
are in the elementary schools of both the incorporated 
and rural districts. In fact, 760 out of the 1,114 children 
fifteen years of age, 368 of the 669 sixteen years of age, 
178 of the 383 seventeen years of age, and 67 out of the 
198 eighteen years of age, or more than half of all the 
children now in school of high school age are still doing 
grade work, to the detriment of the younger children 
in these schools and to their own great disadvantage. 
It naturally follows that the high schools are enrolling 
less than half of all white children now in school of high 
school age, to say nothing of the number of children of 
high school age out of school altogether. 

In the second place, even of those who do get into high 
school, few ever reach the fourth or last year. The high 
school enrollment, by years, in 1917-18 was as follows: 

ist year 601 

2nd year 347 

3d year 242 

4th year 116 

Total ' . . . . 1,306 

'These per cents, would probably be slighdy higher if we knew the g.ges 
of the 669 omitted. 



68 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

The heavy loss from year to year is in part due to the 
fact that, of the 44 incorporated districts, only 15 support 
four year high schools. Whatever the cause, there are 
only 116 fourth year high school pupils in the whole 
state outside of Wilmington. As pointed out before, 
there are probably more than 2,013 children old enough 
to be in this grade, which means that at the present time 
approximately only one child out of 17 actually reaches 
the final year of the public school. 

The failure of more children to advance further in the 
schools is due not only to the fact that the schools do not 
reach all the children of the state and that high school 
facilities are limited, but also to the fact that the children 
are neither continuous nor regular in attendance. For 
example, the white schools in incorporated districts were 
in session during 1917-18, on the average, 175 days; 
pupils were enrolled, on the average, 148 days, and at- 
tended, on the average, 127 days. The rural schools 
were in session, on the average, 151 days; pupils were en- 
rolled, on the average, in days, and attended, on the 
average, 84 days. The colored schools were in session, 
on the average, 140 days; pupils were enrolled, on the 
average, 102 days, and attended, on the average, 65 
days. 

White children living in incorporated districts thus 
have opportunity to attend school 24 days longer each 
year than white rural children, and all white children 
longer than colored children. Moreover, the white 
children of incorporated districts actually attended, in 



ENROLLMENT AND ATTENDANCE 69 

191 7-18, on the average, 43 days more than the white 
children of rural districts, while the colored children 
were in school, on the average, 19 days less than the 
white rural children. These conditions are fatal to 
thorough work and to satisfactory progress. 

With attendance so poor, it is little wonder that so 
few children advance far enough. An illustration will 
make clear their handicap. The ordinary elementary 
course covers eight years. The course counts on a school 
year of not less than 180 days, with 90 per cent, of at- 
tendance, or a total minimum attendance of 1,296 days. 
On this basis, with attendance in Delaware as it now is, 
it would take children of the incorporated districts on the 
average about ten years, of rural districts something 
over fifteen years, and colored children about twenty 
years to complete a standard elementary course. In 
consequence, the average child in Delaware actually 
completes nothing like a full elementary course of study. 

Delaware has, it is true, a compulsory school attend- 
ance law, requiring on its face that all children between 
the ages of seven and fourteen should attend school 
continuously for at least five months each year, enrol- 
ling not later than one month after the schools open. 
Unfortunately, however, local boards are permitted to 
reduce the compulsory period to three months, and an 
astonishing mmiber take advantage of this provision. 
Out of 328 separate white districts, over a half, or 166, 
limit the compulsory period to less than five months, and 
115, or 35 per cent., have only three months. It is 



70 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

worthy of note, however, that, without legal compulsion, 
II districts increased the period beyond five months.* 
But whatever the length of the compulsory period, under 
present conditions the compulsory law is not and cannot 
be enforced. For example, in Kent County the average 
nimiber of days attended by boys in one room rural 
schools having a three months' compulsory period was 
69 days; in one room rural schools having a four months' 
compulsory period, 68 days; and in one room rural 
schools having a five months' compulsory period, 72 
days. As stated before, the enforcement of the com- 
pulsory attendance law is in the hands of the clerks of 
the local boards, the county superintendents, and the 
teachers. There is not an attendance officer in all the 
state. In consequence, the compulsory education law 
of Delaware is practically a dead letter. 

Not without relation to poor attendance is the absence 
in Delaware of provision for medical inspection. While 
no reliable data are available, there is no reason to sup- 
pose that physical defects and contagious diseases, both 
of which interrupt regular attendance, are less common 
in Delaware than in other states. In towns and cities 
where medical inspection has been provided, schools are 
rarely closed on account of the simpler infectious ail- 
ments — ^whooping cough, measles, chicken pox, etc.; 
in Delaware, however, the schools have not infrequently 
to be closed for weeks at a time on account of these dis- 
eases. 

^See Appendix, Table XTE, page 108. 



ENROLLMENT AND ATTENDANCE 71 

The correctives for the unsatisfactory situation as 
respects enrolhnent and attendance are three: (i) The 
school year should be equalized by lengthening the term 
in all white and in all colored rural schools to at least 
180 days of actual session; (2) the present compulsory 
school attendance law should be materially modified 
and attendance officers provided; and (3) medical in- 
spection should be authorized. 

One important implication of these measures needs 
special emphasis. The lengthened school year goes 
with the improved training of teachers. As long as 147 
out of 335 white districts and 73 out of 88 colored dis- 
tricts have a school year of only seven months,^ it is 
impossible to obtain well trained teachers, for while the 
monthly salary may be fairly good, the total annual 
salary is too small to warrant superior training or to 
hold persons of vigorous endowment. To make teaching 
in Delaware an occupation attractive to well trained 
teachers, the school year must be extended and thus the 
annual return increased. 



*See Appendix, Table 11, page 99. 



IX. FINANCING THE SCHOOLS 

FOR the kind of education just described, what 
does Delaware pay? 
The total current expenditure in 1917-1918 on 
all the schools of the state was about $437,253.18.^ 
This sum does not include interest, debt payment, and 
expenditure for permanent improvement. It was dis- 
tributed as follows: 



TYPE OF SCHOOL 


ANNUAL 

CUIURENT 

EXPENDITURE 


ANNUAL 

CURRENT COST 

PER PUPIL 

ENROLLED 


ANNUAL CUR- 
RENT COST 
PER PUPIL IN 
AVERAGE 
DAILY 
ATTENDANCE 


Incorporated Schools 

Rural Schools 

Colored Schools 


$233,544.65 

166,581.72 

37,126.81 


$25.71 

15.72 
8.29 


$35.50 
28.36 

17.75 


Total 


$437,253.18 


$18.10 


$30.06 



■' The current cost, when based on enrollment, runs, it 
will be noted, from $26 per pupil in incorporated dis- 
tricts down to $16 per pupil in rural districts, and down 
to $8 per pupil in colored schools. When based on 



*See Appendix, Table XTTI, page 108a. 

72 



FINANCING THE SCHOOLS 73 

average daily attendance, the current per pupil cost 
runs from $36 in incorporated schools to $18 in colored 
schools. The gap between current cost figured on the 
basis of enrollment and current cost figured on the 
basis of attendance is unusually wide, owing to the 
very poor school attendance. 

The marked differences in the current expenditures 
on schools of different types indicate, in general, the 
differences in the educational opportunities which town, 
rural, and colored children respectively enjoy. Thus it 
is evident that the educational opportunities of white 
children in the towns are probably a fifth better than 
the educational opportunities of rural white children, 
while the opportunities of all white children are de- 
cidedly superior to those of colored children. Even 
the highest per capita expenditure — that in the incor- 
porated schools of towns — ^is low; and when the cost 
of the different types of schools is combined, the 
average per pupil expenditure is very low. That is, 
Delaware buys a low and cheap brand of education. 
Probably not more than seven other states spend 
so little on education^ as Delaware. It is, however, 
still true that Delaware pays high for what it gets. 
Indeed, it is difficult to see how a state could get less for 
its money. 

As stated above, the reported expenditures for 191 7-18 
are approximate only. They are approximate because 

'See Report of the U. S. Commissioner of Education, 191 7, Vol. II,. 
page 82. 



74 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

complete and accurate financial data do not exist. Full 
data for the preceding school year are supposed to be 
in the office of the state auditor not later than the last 
of September. But under the present system the 
financial accounts of the 424 separate school districts 
cannot be audited within the time limit set by the law. 
There are always a few delinquents. For example, 
as late as the first week of November of this year (19 18), 
there were 15 districts with which the auditor had not 
settled. To ascertain approximately Delaware's ex- 
penditure on public education in 191 7-18 we were there- 
fore compelled to substitute the expenditures of an 
earlier year in the case of the 15 districts not reporting. 
On the other hand, there were 11 white and 10 colored 
teachers from whom the commissioner of education had 
for 1917-18 no data on enrollment and attendance; in 
these instances we also substituted the enrollment and 
attendance reported for earlier years. These substitu- 
tions, while probably not affecting materially the re- 
ported cost of the schools, reveal the disorderly con- 
ditions that prevail. On no single feature of the state 
educational system are full and reliable data available. 

The funds for the support of local schools are derived 
partly from the state and partly from local taxation 
and incidental local sources. Such money as the state 
apportions to the several school districts is raised by 
indirect taxation, Delaware being one of the few states 
which levy no direct state school tax. Like most of 
our states, Delaware has a permanent school fund, 



FINANCING THE SCHOOLS 75 

«rhich amounts to $944,407. It yields an annual income 
of about $42,000. This sum is supplemented by an 
annual legislative appropriation from the general treas- 
ury of the state, which, for 1917-18, amounted to 
$142,000,^ 

The state distributed in 191 7-18 to the several districts, 
exclusive of Wilmington, $138,190.02, an amount equal 
to 31 per cent, of the total current cost of the schools.^ 
These state funds may be used for two purposes only — 
payment of teachers' salaries, and purchase of textbooks, 
which are provided free in all schools. 

State funds are apportioned on the basis of the number 
of teachers in service. A district employing one teacher 
in 1917-18 received one portion or $188,^ a district 
employing two teachers, two portions or twice the 
amount, and so on. The practice of basing the state 
apportionment on the number of teachers has exer- 
cised an unfortunate influence on educational progress. 
Formerly it tended to multiply the number of districts; 
now it proves a bar to school consolidation. On other 
accounts also, this method of distributing the state 
fund is objectionable, for it disregards the number of 
pupils to be instructed and all differences in the financial 



*This appropriation has now been increased to $250,000. The $142,000 
is exclusive of $22,000 for the tuition of outside pupils, and other small 
appropriations for specific objects. 
i^ *See Appendix, Table XIV, page 109. 

'For the present year, 1918-19, owing to the increased appropriation 
of the state, the apportionment per teacher is about $300. 



76 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

ability of different districts. A rich district with few 
pupils receives as much from the state as a poor district 
with many pupils. State funds should be apportioned 
so as to equalize both educational opportunities and 
financial burdens. 

The present method of apportioning the state fund is 
further objectionable in that it fails to encourage high 
school development. It is of course true that the ele- 
mentary school is fundamental and should come first. 
On the other hand, a state that lacks well equipped, 
well manned, and well located high schools possesses at 
most only part of a state school system. In Delaware 
high schools are in especial need of the state's fostering 
care, because they are likely to be small, and if left with- 
out generous aid will probably be weak. The law does 
indeed provide that rural pupils who have completed 
the sixth grade may under certain conditions attend 
neighboring graded schools at the state's expense. The 
amount thus received by the graded schools and high 
schools of incorporated districts in 191 7-18 was 
$20,247.25, equal to 8 per cent, of the total current 
expenditure of the incorporated districts.^ This addi- 
tional sum is, however, not enough, as now employed, 
to relieve the situation. 

There is, therefore, the very greatest need of adopting 
in Delaware a method of apportioning state funds which 
recognizes the differing needs of elementary school and 



^See Appendix, Table XIV, page 109. 



FINANCING THE SCHOOLS 77 

high school. State funds for elementary schools should be 
apportioned to the several local school units on a double 
basis — the basis, first, of the number of children of 
elementary school age enrolled, that is, between six and 
fourteen years of age, inclusive, and the basis, second, of 
school attendance. In recognizing the number of 
children to be instructed, the state takes account of the 
amount of work that needs to be done; in recognizing 
actual school attendance, the state takes account of the 
work really accomplished and at the same time stimulates 
the community to keep its children in school. State aid 
to high schools should be granted on the basis of the cost 
of maintaining high schools of a given grade and rank. 
For example, the state should make a fixed grant to a 
district maintaining a 20 unit high school having a 
specified equipment and employing a given number of 
teachers of specified preparation; a fixed grant of less 
amount to a 15 unit high school fulfill ng given require- 
ments as to equipment and teachers; and still less to a 
10 unit high school. Moreover, this aid should be given 
also with a view to bringing a high school education 
within reach of all children without tuition cost to the 
parents; now only a limited number of children from 
each county may so attend. 

As stated above, the second source of school support is 
local taxation. In 191 7-18, local taxation provided in 
the state, outside of Wilmington, 60 per cent, of current 
school receipts: in incorporated districts, 63 per cent.; 
in rural districts, 63 per cent.; and in colored districts, 



78 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

SS per cent.^ The state, it will be noted, is the main 
support of colored schools. Even the incorporated dis- 
tricts and the rural districts provide an unusually small 
proportion of the total current cost of their schools. 
This proportion is probably even lower now, for, as 
pointed out above, the state recently greatly increased 
its appropriation, without imposing any obligations 
whatsoever on local authorities to do more for them- 
selves. 

Local taxation is of two kinds — a head or capitation 
tax, and a property tax. The law requires a minimmn 
capitation tax of $2 annually on each male inhabitant 
of the school district twenty-one years of age. The 
capitation tax ranges from $2 to $6 and produces a con- 
siderable proportion of the school funds raised locally; 
what proportion of the whole is thus raised we cannot 
say, as data are lacking. A capitation tax is, however, 
not a desirable source of local school revenue; it is too 
fluctuating and too difficult to coUect. For these 
reasons, this tax should not be permanently relied on for 
school purposes. 

The property tax for school purposes is levied on both 
real and personal property. The financial resources of 
districts having a one teacher white school vary enor- 
mously — from an assessed property value of $4S>553 
to an assessed value of $589,000.^ Inasmuch as all dis- 
tricts receive per teacher the same amount of state aid, 

^See Appendix, Table XIV, page 109. 
*See Appendix, Table XV, page io8b. 




Old Stone Rural School 



FINANCING THE SCHOOLS 79 

the rates of local taxation must necessarily differ greatly. 
As a matter of fact, they range, in white rural districts, 
from 7 cents to 85 cents on the hundred dollars, and in 
incorporated districts, from 20 cents to 90 cents on the 
hundred dollars.^ The totals raised locally vary corres- 
pondingly; one district raises $100, the minimiun per- 
mitted by law, another raises nine times as much for the 
same purpose. Obviously, a system which permits such 
inequaKties cannot be sound. 

Two changes are required: (i) Boards of education 
must be financially independent and must be vested 
with power enough to finance efl6.cient schools; (2) the 
state must compel adequate local action. As the situa- 
tion now stands, the state requires local school boards 
to levy not less than $100 per teacher annually — an 
arbitrary and entirely inadequate requirement; it also 
provides that for certain violations — such, for example, 
as not keeping the schools open at least 140 days a year, 
failure of the district school clerks to settle with the 
state auditor, etc. — the whole or a part of the state 
apportionment may be withheld. But these penalties 
are almost never imposed. Besides, the principle in- 
volved is wrong. If the children of the state are to be 
safeguarded in their educational rights, the separate dis- 
trict units cannot be left free to follow their own prefer- 
ences. The state should impose upon all local boards, 
whether county boards or boards of education of sepa- 
rate districts, requirements which they must fulfill on 

^See Appendix, Table IV, page loi. 



So PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

pain of being declared delinquent, these requirements 
being such as wiU guarantee the establishment and main- 
tenance of good schools. In other words, the interests 
of the state and the welfare of the children are to be safe- 
guarded not by withholding, in case of local delinquency, 
the aid of the state, but by imposing upon the communi- 
ties certain minimum financial responsibilities and by 
acting directly on the proper local officials if these re- 
quirements are not fulfilled. 

Educational inequality of still another kind exists in 
Delaware. For purposes of taxation, Delaware has two 
school systems. Local taxes for white schools are levied 
on the person and property of white citizens; local taxes 
for colored schools are levied on the person and property 
of colored citizens. This practice is clearly undemo- 
cratic. In apportioning its own funds the state makes 
no such distinction; it ought not to countenance any 
such distinction in respect to local taxation. Nowhere 
else in the United States does this practice prevail. It 
is absolutely indefensible. 

Finally, there remain certain features of the old tax 
system that should be eradicated. For example, the 
clerks of the local school boards still make up the tax 
duplicate for their respective districts, and collect the 
school taxes. There are, accordingly, some 424 school 
tax collectors in the state, each getting 8 or 10 per cent, 
of the amounts collected after the loth of August; per- 
sons who pay their school taxes before August loth get 
a discount of 8 per cent. The amount received by any 



FINANCING THE SCHOOLS 8i 

one collector is not large, and there are clerks who take 
nothing for this service. Of those taking the fees, the 
average in 130 one teacher districts reporting was, in 
191 7-18, for Kent County, $20; for New Castle County, 
$15; and for Sussex County, $18.^ Yet the aggregate 
amounts to several thousand dollars. Economy and 
efficiency alike require that school taxes should be col- 
lected as other local taxes are collected, without the in- 
tervention of a special army of school tax collectors. 
Under a county system of school organization, it is easy 
to centralize school tax collection. The county school 
board would make the levy for all the schools, white 
and colored, under its jurisdiction, and the taxes so 
levied would be collected by the county collector; in 
the few separate districts provided for, the local board 
of education would make the levy for all the schools, 
white and colored, under its jurisdiction, and this levy 
would be collected by the collector of other municipal 
taxes. 

To summarize, the present financial support of Dela- 
ware schools is inadequate, school tax burdens are un- 
equal, school support uneven, and the present system 
of school taxation undemocratic. These undesirable con- 
ditions will persist so long as the state allows prac- 
tically unrestricted freedom to small local units. A 
sound system wiU not hamper local initiative; but it 
will begin by requiring that the local unit should at least 
do its duty. In apportioning state funds, the state 

*See Appendix, Table XVI, page io8c. 



82 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

should seek to equalize educational opportunities and 
school tax burdens, taking into consideration the dif- 
ferences between the elementary school and the high 
school. Finally, if Delaware is to have good schools, it 
is certain that the amount of local financial support 
must be greatly increased; it may also prove necessary 
for the state to increase its appropriations. Let it not 
be forgotten that improved education cannot be ob- 
tained without expense; let it also be remembered that 
the states which hold their own people and attract immi- 
gration are not the states that have low taxes and poor 
schools, but rather those that have good schools for 
which the people are glad to tax themselves to the limit 
of their resources. 



X. CONCLUSIONS 

IN THE course of the preceding chapters we have, 
in describing and criticizing present conditions, also 
indicated the nature of the changes required. In the 
present chapter, these suggestions will be brought to- 
gether in order that the reader may obtain a clear view 
of the reorganization that is, in our judgment, imperative. 
The state board of education should become a lay 
board to which persons officially connected as officers 
or trustees with institutions affected by its action should 
be ineligible. The board's function should be, not itself 
directly to manage or administer the schools, but to de- 
termine large questions of policy and to select agents 
whom it should hold to strict accoimtability. The board 
should choose the commissioner of education, who should 
be its executive officer. The principle on which the 
powers and duties of the board and the commissioner 
should be allotted is clear. Matters relating to govern- 
ment and legislation belong to the board; everything hav- 
ing to do with the execution of the will of the board, such 
as the inspection, supervision, and administration of the 
schools, belongs to the commissioner of education^ subject 
to the board's authority and approval. A thoroughgoing 
revision of the school laws in strict conformity with this 

83 



84 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

principle will localize responsibility, facilitate the work 
of the commissioner of education, and free the board 
from the necessity of taking up technical details. The 
relation sought would be analogous to that existing be- 
tween a board of directors and the manager of a business 
corporation. Like the board of directors, the state board 
would establish controlling policies; like the business man- 
ager, the commissioner of education would be responsible 
for the conduct of the schools in conformity with these 
policies. 

The state board of education, should be empowered 
to fix the salary of the commissioner and of sub- 
ordinates selected on his recommendation and working 
under him. Its funds should be sufficient to cover the 
necessary incidental expenses of the board members, to 
provide suitable office quarters, equipment, and clerical 
assistance, and to prepare such publications as are neces- 
sary to inform the state of its work and of the condition 
and needs of the schools. 

The powers of the state board need to be increased in 
other important respects. For example, the board is 
now authorized to withhold the whole or a part of the 
state dividend in case local school officials fail to comply 
with the law or with its rules and regulations. But, as 
we have pointed out, the laws, as well as the regulations 
of the board, are now violated with impunity. Mean- 
while, the state distributes its dividends regardless of 
whether the law is enforced or broken. The remedy is 
obvious: The state board should be authorized in such 




u 



a, 



CONCLUSIONS 85 

cases, on the recommendation of the commissioner of 
education, to remove the offending ofl&cials from office. 

The state board should also be empowered to fix the 
grade of work that schools may attempt. The instruc- 
tion in one teacher schools should probably be limited 
where possible, to the first six grades. It may also 
prove important at times to limit the work undertaken 
in villages and towns. Many a village and town 
school, spurred by local pride, is now unduly expanded. 
Where this occurs, it would be in the interest of sound 
education to restrict the courses offered and to arrange 
to procure for the pupils further opportunities in other 
schools within reach. 

Again, the state board should be vested with full 
powers over the examination and certification of 
teachers, county superintendents, supervisors, principals, 
and attendance officers. Under this arrangement, the 
higher certificates would usually be issued on the basis 
of satisfactory evidence of quafifications and experience, 
while the examinations of elementary teachers would be 
held, as now, at stated intervals, at the county seats of 
the respective counties. The questions would be pre- 
pared and the answers read by the state comimissioner 
of education and his assistants, while the county super- 
intendents would merely conduct the examinations and 
certify to the character of the applicants. Applicants 
would not be inconvenienced by the centralization of 
authority, while uniformity of standard would thus be 
established. 



86 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

Finally, the school building situation in Delaware, as 
pointed out, is critical. Even of the newer school build- 
ings, some are very good and some are very poor; but 
whether a new building is well planned or not is now a 
matter of accident. To introduce system where chance 
now rules, the state board should receive authority to 
prescribe regulations governing the building of school- 
houses, and the state commissioner, as its executive of- 
ficer, should be required, after examining plans and specifi- 
cations, to give written approval before building con- 
tracts become valid. Moreover, the state board, on the 
written recommendation of the commissioner of educa- 
tion, should be vested with authority to condemn school 
buildings where they are obviously a menace to the health 
and safety of the children. 

In this, as in all other respects, the state board should 
act through its executive officer, the commissioner of 
education, but the resources at the disposal of the com- 
missioner of education, inadequate at present, need to be 
extended as well as specialized, if the office is to be made 
efficient. The staff of the state department should be in- 
creased to include, at the very least, two stenographers, 
a clerk to be in charge of reports, and an assistant to be 
in charge of educational statistics and special studies. 
There should also be a reasonable allowance for office 
equipment, office supplies, printing, and traveling ex- 
penses. 

The proposed program is not elaborate; if it seem so 
that is because the present organization is so utterly in- 



CONCLUSIONS 87 

adequate. The expense of conducting the state depart- 
ment should be regarded as an overhead charge, incurred 
for the purpose of getting better results from the state's 
present school expenditure. If we assiune that the sum 
is $15,000 a year, let it be remembered that this is the 
most economical way of making sure that the half million 
dollars raised by the state and locally are effectively em- 
ployed. This is economy in the best and largest sense 
of the word, 

A strengthened state department of education would 
avail little unless accompanied by a reconstructed and 
strengthened local educational organization. To this 
end, the county should be made the local administrative 
unit, at the head of which should be placed a county 
school board, with large educational and financial powers, 
and with an adequate professional staff. The more popu- 
lous and wealthy centers should be erected into separate 
school districts, on condition that they fulfill certain re- 
quirements as to the grade of schools to be maintained, 
the grounds, buildings, and equipment to be provided, 
the preparation of the teachers to be employed, and the 
administrative direction and supervision to be supplied. 
Such a qualified county system permits the larger towns 
to enjoy a measure of local autonomy, and at the same 
time secures to the smaller towns, villages, and open coxm- 
try the benefits of a centralized organization. 

Under a county school system, the county board of 
education represents local educational interests. That 
the people may have a direct voice in the control and 



88 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

development of their schools, the county board of edu- 
cation should be elected by the people; but tenure should 
be so arranged as to give stability to the board and 
continuity to its policy. If members of the county 
board are chosen at the time of the general county 
election, they should be voted for on a separate ballot 
without partisan designations. 

Even under a county system, there will still be need 
in rural sections of local school trustees, but these 
should be appointed by the coimty board and have re^ 
stricted powers. 

The educational powers of the county board, subject 
to the general law and the rules and regulations of the 
state board, should cover the making of rules and regu- 
lations applicable to the conduct of the schools under 
local conditions, the adaptation to local needs of courses 
of study outlined by the state department, and the 
selection, appointment, and assignment of teachers, on 
the nomination of the superintendent. The powers of 
the local trustees over principals and teachers should be 
limited to filing written charges with the county board 
in case of dissatisfaction, while the dismissal in each case 
should be ordered on the recommendation of the county 
superintendent, with the approval of the county board. 
Local pride and interest must, indeed, be cultivated, but 
these are in the end best subserved by those measures 
that make for school efficiency. 

On the other hand, the county boards must be vested 
with financial power adequate to enable them to estab- 



CONCLUSIONS "• 89 

lish and maintain satisfactory schools; that is, they must 
be put in position to do their duty by the schools. At 
the present time there is scarcely a school in the state 
which is not suffering from unjustifiable lack of funds. 
To give county boards adequate financial powers does 
not mean needless expenditure of public money. School 
boards elected by the people are just as amenable to 
local influences as other bodies. They cannot go faster 
than local sentiment approves or local resources allow. 

To be effective, the newly established county boards of 
education must be provided with an adequate profes- 
sional staff, made up of a well trained county superin- 
tendent, qualified supervisors, and attendance officers. 
No one should be eligible to appointment as county 
superintendent unless he be a college graduate, who has 
had at least five years of experience in the elementary 
schools and not less than one year of professional grad- 
uate work in an approved university, specializing in 
educational administration and supervision. The ap- 
pointee should also be required to procure a certificate 
from the commissioner of education and his appoint- 
ment should bear the commissioner's written approval. 
The term of the county superintendent should be at 
least four years, and his salary should not be permitted 
to fall below a given minimum. 

The county superintendent should bear full responsi- 
bility for the conduct of the schools in conformity with 
the state laws* He should have authority over the 
county courses of study, choice of textbooks from the 



Qo PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

state list, school supplies, the grading of the schools, 
the examination and promotion of pupils, the admission 
of rural children into graded schools and into high 
schools, and the selection, employment, and placing of 
all teachers. 

We have pointed out that the schools of Delaware 
suffer woefully from a lack of supervision. In fact, the 
schools in the open country and villages, and as a rule 
in the larger towns, are really not supervised at all. 
Well trained county superintendents will labor to little 
purpose unless provided with supervisory assistance. 
It should therefore be made mandatory upon each county 
to employ supervisors as follows: in Sussex County, not 
less than three; in Kent and New Castle counties, not 
less than two each, the counties being permitted to have 
as many more as may be locally thought desirable. To 
guard against incompetency, the supervisors employed 
should hold a certificate in supervision from the com- 
missioner of education, based on academic and specialized 
professional training equivalent to graduation from col- 
lege, and not less than three years of experience as a 
teacher in the elementary schools. They should receive 
a salary commensurate with the importance of their 
services. 

Into schools thus improved the children of the state 
must be regularly and continuously brought. To this 
end, the state requires a genuine compulsory attendance 
law affecting all children old enough to go to school and 
all who have not completed the eight grades of the ele- 



CONCLUSIONS 91 

mentary school. But compulsory education does not 
enforce itself. Hence, the employment in each county 
of at least one attendance officer, whose qualifications 
are certified to and whose employment is approved by 
the state commissioner, should be made mandatory. 
To secure properly qualified persons for this important 
work, an adequate annual salary should be guaranteed. 

Finally, in order that competent county educational 
officials may do the work awaiting them, decent quarters 
and a fair amount of office help are necessary. The 
state should, therefore, require county boards of educa- 
tion to provide satisfactory offices and office facilities, 
to employ adequate clerical assistance (at least one 
stenographer and statistical clerk), to provide means of 
travel and to bear all expenses necessary to the perform- 
ance of official duties. 

A cotmty organization such as outlined involves the 
outlay in New Castle and Kent counties of approximately 
$12,000 a year each, and in Sussex County, approximately 
$14,000 a year, or a total for the three counties of 
$38,000. Once more, however, this expenditure is 
made in order to obtain effective service from sums 
many times as great. To carry this overhead expense 
would be a heavy financial burden upon the counties. 
At the present time> the state bears the entire expense of 
the county boards and the county superintendents. 
It would, therefore, involve no new principle or prece- 
dent for the state to assume a part of the expense of the 
proposed county organization by bearing, for example, 



92 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

the salary of the county superintendent, the supervisors, 
and the attendance officer. 

As pointed out above, the adoption of the county 
system of organization is not inconsistent with making 
separate school districts out of the larger towns. These 
separate districts would have boards of education, 
elected by the people, with powers similar to those of the 
county boards. The authority to create separate dis- 
tricts should be vested in the state board of education, 
and these separate districts would be subject to its super- 
vision. Towns erected into separate districts would con- 
tinue as such so long as they met the requirements im- 
posed by the law and the state board of education. On 
failure to meet these requirements, as revealed by state 
inspection, such towns would forfeit their privilege and 
their schools would automatically come under the control 
of the county board of education. 

The foregoing changes in state, county, and local 
organization, and the proposed increased e3q)enditures 
for professional administrative and supervisory assist- 
ance are all absolutely essential, and should, as soon as 
practicable, be followed by the making of proper pro- 
vision for the training of elementary teachers, both 
white and colored. Delaware, as a sovereign state, 
cannot rely upon chance importation of trained teachers 
from the adjoining states — ^more especially as experience 
proves that it cannot even so obtain what it needs in 
respect to either number or quality. 

These steps taken, it follows that the state board 



CONCLUSIONS 93 

of education must be authorized to specify in terms of 
academic and professional training the conditions 
on which teachers' certificates may be granted, and the 
law must so circumscribe the granting of certificates 
that after a reasonable period of time they may be issued 
only to persons of satisfactory academic and profes- 
sional preparation. Otherwise, certificates will con- 
tinue to be issued, on the ground of expediency and 
temporary pressure, to the young, the inexperienced, 
and the ill trained. 

Finally, a new method of distributing state funds 
should be introduced. In the first place, the state 
board of education should present to the governor, who 
would in turn transmit to the general assembly, a budget 
including, by items, all appropriations requested for 
public education. Conflict of interests would thus be 
avoided, and the part which the state is taking in the 
promotion and encouragement of public education would 
be made clear. 

In the distribution of state dividends, a distinction 
should be made between the elementary and high 
schools. In apportioning state funds to elementary 
schools, two factors ought to be considered: (a) the 
school population between six and fourteen years of 
age, in so far as it is enrolled, and (b) school attendance. 
If the state's aid is based on school enroUment and 
attendance the state makes of its aid, as it should, a 
powerful lever in getting children into the school and in 
securing rejgular attendance. 



94 PUBLIC EDUCATION IN DELAWARE 

A different principle is involved in aiding high schools. 
High schools, as suggested above, cost more than elemen- 
tary schools, and the cost of high schools in Delaware is 
particularly high, because they are small and will doubt- 
less continue to be small. Therefore, state aid to high 
schools should be distributed with direct reference to 
the cost of high school education. A certain specified 
sum should be allotted to first class high schools, that is, 
to those having four year courses; another amount to 
second class high schools, those having three year 
courses; and stiU another amount to third class high 
schools, those having two year courses. 

There is a further important factor to be taken into 
account. A high school education should be within 
reach of every child in Delaware. While county boards 
of education should, as far as possible, develop high 
schools, the high schools of the state offering four year 
courses will of necessity be located mostly in the separate 
districts. Therefore, aid should be given with a view 
to making these high schools free and accessible to all 
the children of the county, county children being required 
to complete first the course as far as it goes offered by 
the high school nearest at hand. 

The changes in the school laws of Delaware which we 
have suggested are at once obvious and fundamental. 
But we should in candor point out that even better laws 
do not of themselves make better schools. How much 
actual improvement results from the reorganization 
which we recommend will in the end depend on the 



CONCLUSIONS 95 

spirit in which this reorganization is effected. Politics, 
personal interest, local selfishness may go far to nullify 
the value of any reform. The new law will make good 
schools possible; Delaware will, however, obtain them 
only if the people of the state are seized with fresh in- 
terest and faith in education, only if they are thoroughly 
convinced that education is the most sacred and im- 
portant of the state's functions, only if they are highly 
resolved that, whatever else Delaware does, the state 
will at least do what it is now conspicuously failing to do, 
namely, its plain duty to the children of the common- 
wealth. 



APPENDIX 
A. STATISTICAL TABLES 



APPENDIX 



99 



TABLE I 
Attendance at Annual School Meetings (White), 1918 



DISTRICT 


NUMBER 

OF 

DISTRICTS 

REPORTING 


AVERAGE 
NUMBER OF 
VOTERS IN 

DISTRICT 


AVERAGE 
NUMBEPv 
VOTING AT 
ANNUAL 
MEETING 


PER CENT. 

VOTING AT 

ANNUAL 

MEETING 


Incoiporated. 
Rural 


19 
167 


261 
46 


35 
10 


13 
22 


Totali 


186 


68 


12 


18 



'150 white districts missing. 



TABLE n 
Days Schools Were en Session in Different Districts, 1917-18 



District 



Incorporated. . . 

Rural 

Colored 

Totali 

1 1 district missing. 



Days Schools Were in Session 



131 
to 
140 



3 

144 

73 



141 

to 

160 



3 

62 

5 



161 
to 
180 



32 

61 

3 



220 70 96 23 



181 
to 
200 



6 

17 



Unknown 



14 



Total 



44 

291 

88 



423 



Average 

Number 

of Days 

in 

Session 



175 
151 
140 



164 



lOO 



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Monthly Saxakies of Teachers igiS-ip 



Teachers 

IN 


Monthly Salaries 




$35 


$40 


$45 


$50 


$55 


$60 


$65 


$70 


$75 


$80 
10 

10 
7 

17 
27 


$85 
4 

3 

1 

4 
8 


$90 
10 

1 

1 

11 


$95 
2 

1 
1 

3 


$100 


$105 


$110 
2 

2 


$115 


$120 
6 

1 

1 

7 


$125 
4 

4 


$130 


$135 


$140 


$145 


$150 
2 

1 



X 

3 


Over 
$150 

3 
3 


Total 


High Schools 












3 


3 


3 

32 
24 


12 

17 
15 


9 

1 


1 
1 




74 


Elementary Schools: 

Incorporated Districts 
Rural Districts 






i 
12 


17 
56 


24 
65 


52 
103 


42 
26 


204 
311 


Total 

Colored Schools 


1 
1 


19 
19 


16 
40 
56 


73 
16 
89 


89 
3 


155 
2 

160 


68 

71 


56 
59 


32 

44 


1 


515 
81 


Grand Total 


10 


670> 



'This is exclusive of 8 principals: one receiving $650, two $i,oqo, one $1,460, two $i,soo, one $1,527.50, and one $2,000 per year. Fifty-six teachers are missing. 



APPENDIX 



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APPENDIX 



TABLE XII 

Length of Compulsory Attendance Period in White Districts, 

1917-18 



Kind of 
District 


No. OF Months In Compulsory Period 




3Mos, 


4 Mos. 


5 Mos. 


6 Mos. 


7 Mos. 


Un- 
known 


Total 


Incorporated 
Rural 


2 
113 


10 

41 


29 
105 


1 
4 


2 

4 


17 


44 

284 


Total» 


115 


51 


134 


5 


6 


17 


328 



>8 white districts missing. 



2i 
22 
23 
24 
25 

26 
27 
28 
29 
30 
31 

32 
33 

34 
35 

36 
37 



Enterprises were capjiunrci irrigating m ^i^xu. 

Included in projects -.-■-.-■-■•■:--:-:- 

Carey Act enterprises, irrigated in 1909......... 

Enterprises were capable of irrigating in 1910. 
Included in projects 



Irrigation districts, irrigated in 1909. . ..... . - - - - • 

Enterprises were capable of irngatmg in 1910. 

Included in projects...........-:.----- 

Cooperative enterprises, nrigated m 1909-.-.--. 

Enterprises were capable of irrigating in 1910. 

Included in projects 



Commercial enterprises, irrigated in 1909- - - - - - 

Enterprises were capable of irrigatmg m 1910 

Included in projects .- - r -■;-;•:• 

Individual and partnership enterprises, nrigated m 



1909- 



Enterprises were capable of irrigating in 1910 . 

Included in projects 

ACREAGE IRRIGATED 

Classified by Sotjece of Watee Supply. 



Supplied from streams. 

By gravity 

By pumping 

Supplied from lakes. . . 

By gravity 

By pumping 



85 
85 
85 

2,075 
2,109 
2,109 

1,679 
2,065 
3,073 



30, 528 
31,965 
38,425 



3,662 

3,647 

15 



24, 528 
31,521 
33,019 



Supplied from wells ' — 

Flovring 

By pumping 

Supplied from springs 

Supplied from reservoirs _- 

Total acreage supplied by pumpmg 

IRRIGATION ENTERPRISES 

Independent enterprises number. 

Number in 1899 * - 

Per cent of increase, 1899-1910 

Main ditches number.. 

Number in 1899 i 

Per cent of increase, 1899-1910 .- 

^i^^i«'is99v:;:;:"""":;"::""::::Suls:: 

Per cent of increase, 1899-1910. ■■■-■- - - ■ 

Capacity cubic feet Per second. . 

Laterals SSls" 

Length uuSbl?" 

Reservons "Selt"' 

Capacity acreieei.. 

Flowing wells -• number 

Capacity gallons per mmute 

Pumped weils -- "'^°^^?^-- 

Capacity gallons Per mmute. . 

Pumping plants ■ - - -"^^iJ^J^- ■ 

Enghie capacity - - - - -horsepower. . 

Pump capacity gallons per mmute- - 

COST 

Cost of enterprises up to July 1, 1010 ^3^11- "• 

Cost in 1899 s dollars. . 

Per cent of increase, 1899-1910 v:; " ' " i 

^.verage cost per acre enterprises were capab e ot 

irrigatiQg in 1910 ^°\,- 

Average cost per acre irrigated in 1899 s . .. .aollars- 

Estimated final cost of existing enterprises do ars . . 

Average per acre included m projects aoliars. 

OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE 



5 
172 



28, 373 

28,263 

110 



26,683 

6,526 

20, 157 



20,207 



103 



619 



372 

46 

32 

24 

26, 438 



309 



1,569,028 



368.40 



876 
115 
246 
19 
189 I 

588 

92,689 

580 

200,947 

433 

8,575 

286,003 



1,948,246 



30.69 



1,569,028 1,948,246 
297.90 27.27 



Acreage for which cost is reported VT "iT ;:' ' 

Total cost reported : v - - - v -. ; "^'^^ i»r!" 

Average per acre for which cost is reported. dollars. . 

A verage cost per acre in 1899 < dollars . . 

Per cent of Increase, 1899-1909 



804 

3,150 

3.92 



29,239 

78,875 
2.70 



Change of boundary. (See explanation at close of text.) 









































































•8,200 

15,917 

19,980 

860 

1,110 

1,110 

134,228 
221,428 
248,765 

8,710 
10,215 
11,864 












































2,190 
2,500 
3,000 

8,850 
9,500 
12,150 

71,035 

77,476 
109,016 




5,773 
9,288 
9,350 

5,000 
9,500 
9,500 

4,283 
8,388 
11,064 




























29 
60 
60 

342 

530 

1,305 






















67 
71 
71 


376 
546 
767 


49,027 
50,007 
84,973 


1,191 
2,035 
2,443 


64 
"64 


324 
324 


278 

270 

8 


149,714 

147,138 

2,576 


69,164 
69,164 


46,142 
46,142 


10,603 

9,769 

834 

20 


1,070 
«32 
238 






690 
690 


2,420 
2,420 


5 










5 










20 
4,428 




3 


6 


29 


2,264 

262 

2,002 

20 


308 

305 

3 

7,189 

4,724 

3 




7 








3 


6 
46 


29 

4 

60 

37 




4,428 
5 


7 




465 


94 
15 


67 


6 


4,578 




5,282 


245 









6 


48 


37 


135 


388 


77 


117 


35 


















5 


49 


33 


45 


446 


85 


106 


26 


















5 


21 


19 


•J6i 


637 


172 


223 


8 
















21 28 


49 
8 
6 
7 

10 


4,478 

353 

352 

10 

15,003 

29 

2,567 

78 

52,008 

108 

1,505 

93,2G9 


2,907 

490 

175 

32 

33,993 

45 

1,256 

2 

44 
2 
2 

44 


1,243 
101 

65 


1,903 

23 

32 

10 

2 


25 
3 






3 


1 


8 
3 


3 


1 




13 






















2 
49 
2 
1 
49 


6 

2,296 

10 

65 

3,586 




102 
196,236 

124 

5,338 

260,513 


2 


160 




300 


g 




17 


48 




115 


100 




7,751 








380 


13,440 


30/297 


3,748,211 


301,040 


64,282 


495,916 


63,948 


















,61 


24.62 


51.35 


15.07 


3.36 


1.29 


18.25 


26.51 


iSO 
61 


13,440 
17.52 


30,297 
22.20 


3,748,;il 
13.30 


C16,040 
2.55 


64,r;82 

0.76 


678,916 
19.35 


53,948 
22.08 








103,288 

94,228 

0.91 


950 
250 
0.26 




10,073 

12,916 

1 28 






















































|-° 











6 Not reported. 



' Not reported by counties. 



¥ 



io8a 



TABLE Xin 

CuKRJENT Expense DisBtratSEMENXS 1917-181 



County 


Instruction 


FtTEL 


Repairs and 
FusMirnEE 


CONTINGENCrES 

AND Janitors 


Textbooks 


Total 


Dis- 

BCRSE- 
ttENT 

PerPd- 
pn. En- 
rolled 


Dis- 

BDRSE- 
MENT 

Per Pu- 
pil In 


District 


Amount 


Per 

Cent. 


Amount 


Per 
Cent. 


Amount 


Per 

Cent. 


Amount 


Per 
Cent. 


Amount 


Per 
Cent. 


Aver- 
age 
Daily 
Attend- 
ance 




$101,313.00 
46,131.74 
46,959.00 
8,222.26 


75.2 
73.0 
76.2 
82.0 


$8,113.34 

3,416.47 

3,896.80 

800.07 


6.0 
5.4 
6.3 
8.0 


$4,797.29 

2.455.85 

1,944.12 

397.32 


3.6 
3.9 
3.2 

4.0 


$18,241.24 

10,265.20 

7,550.12 

425.92 


13.5 
16.3 
12.2 
4.2 


$2,355.19 

876.32 

1,293.15 

185.72 


1.7 
1.4 
2.1 
1.8 


$134,820.06 
63,145.58 
61,643.19 
10,031.29 


$21.29 
28.52 
19.82 
9.95 


$33.71 


Incorporated 

Rural 

Colored 


38.98 
33.76 
18.11 


Kent 

Incorporated 

Rural 

Colored 


99,407.62 
59,459.38 
29,265.29 
10,682.95 


68.2 
63.3 
76.7 
78.8 


6,696.44 
2,953.32 
2,645.79 
1,097.33 


4.6 
3.1 
6.9 
8.1 


9,128.57 

5,271.13 

3,248.58 

608.86 


6.3 
5.6 
8.5 
4.5 


25,823.43 

23,275.34 

1,759.93 

788.16 


17 7 
24.8 
4.6 
5.8 


4,608.09 

2,982.82 

1,241.76 

383.51 


3.2 
3.2 
3.3 
2.8 


145,664.15 
93,941.99 
38,161.35 
13,560.81 


19.92 
30.35 
14.97 
8.13 


34,69 
42,66 
29,58 
19.18 


Sussex 

Incorporated 

Rural 

Colored 


119,547.74 
58,404.22 
50,575.28 
10,568.24 


76.3 
76.4 
75.7 
78.1 


8,856.97 

4,499.60 

3,608.33 

749.04 


5.6 
5.9 
5.4 
5.5 


8,652.99 

1,523.07 

6,306.21 

823.71 


5.5 
2.0 
9.5 
6.1 


14,073.36 

9.752.04 

3,360.11 

961.21 


9.0 
12.7 
5.0 
7.1 


5,637.91 

2,278.15 

2,927.25 

432.51 


3.6 
3.0 
4.4 
3.2 


156,768.97 
76.457.08 
66,777.18 
13,534.71 


14.91 
20.25 
13.52 
7.51 


' 24.70 
27.73 
24,21 
16.29 


State 

Incorporated 

Rural 

Colored 


320,268.36 
163,995.34 
126,799.57 
29,473.45 


73.2 
70.2 
76.1 
79.4 


23,666.75 
10,869.39 
10,150.92 
2,646.44 


5.4 
4.7 
6.1 
7.1 


22,578.85 
9,250.05 

11,498.91 
1,829.89 


5.2 
4.0 
6.9 
4.9 


58.138.03 
43.29Z58 
12,670.16 
2,175.29 


13.3 
18.5 
7.6 
5.9 


12,601.19 
6,137.29 
5,462.16 
1,001.74 


2.9 
2.6 
3.3 
2.7 


437,253.18 
233,544.65 
166,581.72 
37,126.81 


18.10 
25.71 
15.72 
8.29 


30.06 
35,50 
28.36 
17.75 



'In the case of is districts which did ribt report, current expense disbursements for 1915-16 were substituted. 



io8b 



TABLE XV 

Assessed Value of Property m One Teacher Rural White Districts, 1917-1S 





Assessed Value of Peopeety 




County! 


$40,001 

to 
$50,000 


$50,001 

to 
$60,000 


$60,001 

to 
$70,000 


$70,001 

to 
$80,000 


$80,001 

to 
$90,000 


$90,001 

to 
$100,000 


$100,001 

to 
$110,000 


$110,001 

to 
$120,000 


$120,001 

to 
$130,000 


$130,001 

to 
$140,000 


$140,001 

to 
$150,000 


$150,001 

to 
$160,000 


$160,001 

to 
$170,000 


$170,001 

to 
$180,000 


$180,001 

to 
$190,000 


$190,001 

to 
$200,000 


Over 
$200,000 


Total 


Newcastle 

Kent 

Sussex 


1 


3 
5 


2 
10 


1 
7 
4 

12 


4 
7 
6 


2 
5 

7 


2 

7 
13 


2 

4 
3 


4 
4 
3 


6 
5 
3 


2 
5 


3 

1 
1 


3 
1 

1 


1 
2 
1 


3 
1 
2 


1 
2 


12 

1 
3 


43 
53 
70 


Total 


1 


8 


12 


17 


14 


22 


9 


11 


14 


7 


5 


5 


4 


6 i 3 


16 


166 



•Owing to diSeiences in assessment methods, county by county comparisons are not valid. 



io8c 



TABLE XVI 
Amounts Paid tor Collecting School Taxes in One Teacher White Districts 





Amounts P.4id 


Total 
Districts 


Total 

Amount 

Paid 


Average 

Amount 

Paid 


County 


Noth- 
ing 


Under 
$5.01 


From 
$5.01 

to 
$10.00 


From 
$10.01 

to 
$15.00 


From 
$15.01 

to 
$20.00 


From 
$20.01 

to 
$25.00 


From 
$25.01 

to 
$30.00 


From 
$30.01 

to 
$35.00 


From From 
$35.01 $40.01 

to to 
$40.00 $45.00 


From 
$45.01 

to 
$50.00 


From 
$50.01 

to 
$55.00 


From 
$55.01 

to 
$60.00 


New Castle. 

Kent 

Sussex 


6 
3 

1 


1 
1 


5 
5 
5 


5 
6 
11 


6 
16 


6 

10 
12 


4 
3 
2. 


4 
2 
2 


2 


1 
2 


1 
1 





1 


37 
39 
53 


$560.99 
797.92 
957.06 


$15.16 
20.46 
18.06 


Total'.... 


10 


2 


15 


22 


27 


28 


9 


rf 


2 


3 


1 


129 


2,3] 5.97 


17.95 



1 laS one teacher white districts missing. 



APPENDIX 



109 



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inirt c> t>N in ooojinco c-;Ti;c>qo> 
■^05 t-3 '*t^ <-< ii'odcSo •^0000 



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to to 



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a>e5co-* 
iritsodc; 



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t-'pQirfiri 

LfltOLACO 



oiinwtn 






OtJSOOlO 



ssa 



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^t^l> 00 00 i-l CO CO 



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SJ'S 



APPENDIX 
B. NEW SCHOOL CODE 



APPENDIX 

B. NEW SCHOOL CODE 

AN ACT to repeal Chapter 71 of the revised Code of the State of 
Delaware entitled "Free Schools" and to provide anew Chapter -js 
entitled "Public Schools." 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State 
of Delaware, in General Assembly met: — 

Section i. That Chapter 71 of the Revised Code of the State of 
Delaware be, and the same is hereby repealed, including 2273, Section i, 
and 2326. Section 54, and all intervening Sections, as the same havo 
been heretofore amended, being the entire Chapter, and this new Chapter 
71 is provided in lieu thereof, containing the following Sections: 2273. 
Section i, and 2326-164. Section 216, and all intervening Sections; 
and all Acts and aU parts of Acts inconsistent with the provisions of said 
new Chapter 71 are hereby repealed. 

Article i 
State Board of Education 

2273. Section i. The General administration and supervision of the 
free public schools and of the educational interests of the State shall be 
vested in a State Department of Education, at the head of which shall 
be a State Board of Education. The State Board of Education shall 
be composed of five members, who shall be appointed by the Governor 
from the citizens of the State, for a term of five years, beginning on the 
first day of July next succeeding their appointment, and they shall hold 
office until their successors qualify. Provided that the terms of office of 
persons who are members of the Board at the time this Act goes into ef- 
fect shaU automatically expire, but such members of said Board shall be 

113 



114 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

qualified for appointment under the provisions of this Section, except 
in such cases as they are disqualified by the provisions of this Section. 
In making the first appointments under this Section, the Governor, im- 
mediately after this Act goes into effect, shall appoint to this Board one 
member to serve until the fiirst day of July, 1920; one member to serve 
until the first day of July, 1921; one member to serve until the first day 
of July, 1922; one member to serve until the first day of July, 1923; and 
one member to serve until the first day of July, 1924; and until their 
respective successors qualify. Thereafter, as the respective vacancies 
occur, appointments to this Board shall be made by the Governor before 
the first day of July and the term of each member shall be five years. 
The members of the Board shall be appointed solely because of their 
character and fitness, but no person shall be appointed to this Board who 
is in any way subject to its authority. Vacancies on the Board for any 
cause shall be filled by the Governor for the unexpired term, and until a 
successor qualifies. Any member of this Board shall be eligible for reap- 
pointment unless otherwise disqualified by the provisions of this Section. 

2274. Section 2. The offices of the State Board of Education shall 
be at Dover and shall be provided by the State. The State Board of 
Education shall hold its annual meeting each year, at its office, on the 
first day of July. At this meeting the Board shall each year elect one of 
its members to serve as President, and one to serve as Vice-President. 
Other regular meetings shall be held on the first day of September, De- 
cember, and March, and such special meetings may be held and at such 
places as the duties and business of the Board may require. The rules 
generally adopted by deliberative bodies for their Government shall be 
observed by the State Board of Education. No motion or resolution 
shall be declared adopted without the concurrence of a majority of 
the whole Board. 

2275. Section 3. The members of the State Board of Education 
shall receive as compensation ten ($10.00) dollars per day for each day's 
attendance at the meetings of said Board provided that they shall not 
receive pay for more than one day's attendance each calendar month 
and shall also receive their actual traveling and other necessary expenses 
incurred in attending the meetings and transacting the business of the 
Board. 

2276. Section 4. The State Board of Education shall appoint, 



APPENDIX H5 

subject to the provisions of Section 31 of this Chapter, as its executive 
officer, a State Commissioner of Education, who shall also be the Secre- 
tary of the State Board of Education. As Secretary he shall conduct all 
correspondence of the Board, keep and preserve all of its records, receive 
all reports required by the Board and see that such reports are in proper 
form, complete and accurate. He shall attend all meetings of the Board 
and of its committees, except when his own tenure, his salary, or the 
administration of his office are under discussion, and shall have the right 
to advise on any question under consideration, but shall have no right 
to vote. In case the office of the State Commissioner of Education is 
temporarily vacant, or when the State Commissioner is absent by reason 
of the business in hand, the Board shall appoint one of its members to 
act for the time being as Secretary. 

2277. Section 5. The State Treasurer shall be the Treasurer of the 
State Board of Education. He shall receive and hold all moneys which 
the State Board of Education is entitled to by law and which may come 
into its possession, and shall deposit all such moneys in the financial 
institution which is the legal depository of State moneys in the custody 
of the State Treasurer. He shall pay out all such moneys on the written 
order of the President of the State Board of Education and of its Secre- 
tary, and shall keep such records and accounts of its funds as the State 
Board of Education may require. 

2278. Section 6. The State Board of Education shall cause the 
provisions of this Chapter to be carried into effect. It shall determine 
the educational policies of the State and enact by-laws, or rules and 
regulations for the administration of the public school system, which, 
when enacted and published, shall have the force of law. For the pur- 
pose of enforcing the provisions of this Chapter, and the enacted and 
published by-laws of the Board, the State Board of Education is em- 
powered and shall remove, for immorality, misconduct in office, incom- 
petency or wilful neglect of duty, any officer elected by popular vote or 
appointed under the provisions of this Chapter or any special school law, 
giving him a copy of the charges against him and an opportunity of being 
publicly heard, in person or by counsel, in his defense, upon not less than 
ten days' notice. Vacancies in office caused by such removals shall be 
fiUed by the State Board of Education, such appointees holding office 
until the next regular school election, when the vacancy or vacancies 



ii6 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

shall be regularly fiHed for the remainder of the unexpired term of the 
officer or officers removed. 

2279. Section 7. The State Board of Education shall exercise, 
through the State Commissioner of Education and his professional as- 
sistants, general control and supervision over the free public schools of 
the State; they shall consult with and advise through their executive 
officer and his professional assistants, County Boards of Education, 
Boards of Education of Special School Districts, Boards of School Trus- 
tees, County Superintendents of Schools, Superintendents of Schools 
of Special School Districts, supervisors, attendance officers, principal 
teachers, and interested citizens, and shall seek in every way to direct 
and develop public sentiment in support of public education. 

2280. Section 8. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
rules and regulations for the hygienic, sanitary and protective construc- 
tion of school buildings. It is empowered and shall in its discretion con- 
demn for school purposes, public school buildings that violate these rules 
and regulations. No contract for the erection of a new public school 
building, or for the material alteration of an old public school building, 
costing three hundred dollars ($300) or more, shall be valid unless the 
plans and specifications for the same shall have been approved by the 
State Board of Education and received the written endorsement of the 
State Commissioner of Education. 

2281. Section 9. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
rules and regxilations for the protection of the health, physical welfare, 
and physical inspection of school children of the State. 

2282. Section 10. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
rules and regulations for grading and standardizing all public schools. 
It shall limit on the basis of the equipment and number of teachers em- 
ployed, the years and grades of instruction offered in such schools. It 
shall prescribe the minimum requirements for issuing all certificates and 
diplomas from public schools of this State, and, in co-operation with 
the President of Delaware College and the^Dean of the Women's College 
of Delaware, the minimum requirements for issuing all academic, normal 
school, collegiate, professional, or university degrees. No public school 
with only one teacher, unless otherwise authorized by the State Board of 
Education, shall attempt more than the first six grades of elementary 
school work, and no public school shall attempt high school instruction 



APPENDIX 117 

without the consent of the State Board of Education. Nor shall any 
public or private educational institution issue any certificate, diploma, 
or academic, collegiate, professional, or university degree unless in accord 
with the requirements prescribed as aforesaid. 

2283. Section ii. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
minimum courses of study for all public elementary schools and all 
public high schools. These courses of study shall be printed in such 
quantities as to provide each public school official and teacher with a 
copy, and sufficient for distribution among private schools and interested 
citizens of the State. In every elementary school of and in the State 
there shall be taught at least reading, spelling, handwriting, arithmetic, 
oral and written English, geography, history of the United States and 
Delaware, community civics, elementary science, hygiene and sanitation, 
physical training, and such other studies as may be prescribed by the 
State Board of Education. English shall be the only language em- 
ployed and taught in the first six grades of the elementary schools of and 
in the State, provided in case this provision is violated by individuals, 
private educational associations, corporations, or institutions, the State 
Board of Education shall take such legal action as will enjoin such viola- 
tion. 

2284. Section 12. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
the textbooks to be used in all elementary schools and in all high schools 
of the State. The State Board of Education shall also fix with the re- 
spective publishers the prices at which their respective textbooks shall 
be sold to the County Boards of Education and to the Boards of Educa- 
tion of Special School Districts. The State textbook list shall be an open 
list, that is, a list from which the local school authorities may choose. 
Textbooks may be added to or dropped from the list at any regular 
meeting of the Board, provided that when a textbook has been added to 
the list it may not be dropped before the expiration of four (4) years 
from the date of its being placed on the list. This list of textbooks shall 
be printed in such quantities as to provide each public school official and 
teacher with a copy, and sufficient for distribution among private schools 
and interested citizens of the State. 

2285. Section 13. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
rules and regulations, also the subjects and the standards of teachers' 
examinations, agreeable to the provisions of Article 8 of this Chapter, 



ii8 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

for the certification of teachers in the public schools of the State and, in 
co-operation with the President of Delaware College and the Dean of 
the Women's College of Delaware, for the acceptance of the diplomas 
of the normal schools, eoUeges, and universities of Delaware, as well as 
of other states. No individual, public or private educational association, 
corporation, or institution shall offer a course or courses for the training 
of public school teachers without having first procured the assent of the 
State Board of Education of such teacher training course. 

2286. Section 14. The State Board of Education shall prescribe, 
in co-operation with the President of Delaware College and the Dean 
of the Women's College of Delaware, the conditions on which teachers 
now employed and prospective teachers may attend summer school and 
receive from the State the whole or part of the expenses incurred by such 
summer school attendance. 

2287. Section 15. The State Board of Education shall prescribe, 
subject to the provisions of Article 12 of this Chapter, the conditions as 
to buildings, educational equipment and supplies, library, laboratories, 
courses of study and units of work offered, number and qualifications 
of teachers employed, and enrollment and average daily attendance 
which must be fulfilled in order that high schools may secure the respect- 
ive amounts of State aid provided for in Article 1 2 of this Chapter. The 
State Board of Education shall annually, prior to the fifteenth of Septem- 
ber, make, and publish a list of the high schools of each class entitled to 
State aid according to the provisions of Article 12 of this Chapter. 

2288. Section 16. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
rules and regulations governing the admission of pupils from schools 
under the jurisdiction of Coimty Boards of Education into the schools — 
particularly into the high schools — of the special school districts. It 
shall fix the tuition rates which the County Boards of Education shall 
pay the Boards of Education of such special school districts for the in- 
struction of children so admitted; but in determining the rate of tuition 
to be paid, account should be taken of the State aid received by such 
high schools and also of benefits derived by such schools from the pro- 
visions of the Smith-Hughes Vocational Education Act, that is the tui- 
tion rate should be a reasonable rate, based on the actual local cost of 
high school instruction. Provided that children must first exhaust their 
respective local educational opportunities, that four year high school 



APPENDIX 119 

opportunities shall be open to all the children of the State, and that in 
all cases the tuition shall be a county educational expense, to be paid by 
the County Board of Education. 

2289. Section 17. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
rules and regulations fixing the date of the opening and closing of the 
several school terms in the school year, the hours of the daily school 
sessions, holidays on which the schools shall be closed, the pay of the 
teachers during absence because of sickness or quarantine, or when the 
schools are closed by quarantine, and the forms of contract that shall be 
executed between Boards of Education and all regular employees. 

2290. Section 18. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
subject to the provisions of Section 122 of this Chapter, the conditions 
as to buildings and grounds, educational equipment and supplies, kinds 
and grades of schools supported, courses of study and units of work 
offered, number and qualifications of teachers employed, supervisory 
and administrative direction and control provided which must be met 
and fulfilled in order that those cities and towns designated as special 
school districts in Section 121 of this Chapter may continue to exercise 
the privileges of a special school district and to operate their respective 
schools under Articles 5 and 6 of this Chapter, and which must be met 
and fulfilled by cities or towns before they may be erected by the State 
Board of Education into special school districts and operate their respect- 
ive schools under Articles 5 and 6 of this Chapter. In case any city or 
town designated in Section 121 of this Chapter as a special school dis- 
trict, or any city or town hereafter erected into a special school district 
by the State Board of Education, fails to comply with the provisions 
of Section 122 of this Chapter, and the rules and regulations of the State 
Board of Education enacted under the provisions of this section, such 
city or town shall by order of the State Board of Education cease to 
exist as a special school district and shall automatically become a part 
of the County system of schools and subject to the authority and juris- 
diction of the County Board of Education. In case any city or town 
designated in Section 121 of this Chapter as a special school district, or 
any city or town hereafter erected into a special school district, according 
to the provisions of this Section, shall by order of the State Board of 
Education cease to be a special school district, all property belonging to 
or held by the Board of Education of said special school district, and all 



I20 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

assets, shall pass to the County Board of Education and be held in the 
corporate name of this Board, and the Board of Education of such special 
school district shall make and execute such deeds of conveyance as are 
necessary to pass to the County Board of Education the legal title to 
all such property; and all liabilities of the Board of Education of such 
special school district shall, after proper audit by the Auditor of Ac- 
counts, be assumed by the County Board of Education. When a new 
special school district is created under the provisions of this Section, 
there shall pass from the County Board of Education to the Board of 
Education of said new special school district, and be held in the corporate 
name of this Board, all property that naturally belongs to such new 
special school district, as determined by the State Board of Education 
and the County Board of Education shall make and execute such deeds 
of conveyance as are necessary to pass to the Board of Education of such 
special school district the legal title to all such property; provided that 
in case of a county school debt, the Board of Education of the new special 
school district shall assume its just proportion of such county school 
debt, as determined by the State Board of Education on consultation 
with the County Board of Education, and the State Board of Education 
shall prescribe the conditions under which this debt shall be assumed. 
The State Board of Education is empowered and authorized to change, 
alter, fix and determine the boundaries of any and all special school dis- 
tricts herein designated, and of any and all special school districts here- 
after created. 

2291. Section 19. The State Board of Education and the State 
Commissioner of Education shall co-operate with Coimty Boards of 
Education in the consolidation of the schools under the jurisdiction of 
Coimty Boards of Education. The State Board of Education is author- 
ized, empowered, directed, and required, to contribute twenty (20) per 
cent, of the total first cost of the grounds, buildings, and equipment of 
such consolidated schools, provided that in no fiscal year shall the amount 
so contributed exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000), and provided, fur- 
ther that the plans for such consolidation and the plans for such grounds, 
buildings, and equipment are approved by the State Board of Education. 

2292. Section 20. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
the rules and regulations for taking a biennial school census of all children 
within the State between six and eighteen years of age, inclusive; also 



APPENDIX 121 

the forms and blanks to be employed in taking such census and in com- 
piling the reports thereon. 

2293. Section 21. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
rules and regulations for the enforcement of school attendance as pro- 
vided for in Article 10 of this Chapter. 

2294. Section 22. The State Board of Education shall prescribe 
a uniform series of forms and blanks for the use of County Boards of 
Education, Boards of Education of special school districts, Boards of 
School Trustees, school ofl&cials, and teachers and shall require all finan- 
cial accounts, including the annual school budget, and all educational 
records to be kept and all reports to be made according to these forms 
and blanks. 

2295. Section 23. The State Board of Education shall require all 
persons conducting private schools, and all private educational associa- 
tions, corporations or institutions to report annually, on or before the 
thirty-first day of August as to enrollment, age of pupils, and attendance, 
on such forms as the State Board of Education may provide. More- 
over, the State Board of Education shall require all private schools of an 
elementary and high school grade to report monthly, on forms provided 
by the State Board of Education, to the Superintendent of the Schools 
of the Special School District or to the County Superintendent of Schools, 
according to the location of the private school in question, giving the 
name of each pupil enrolled, the date of enrollment, total days of attend- 
ance to date, and the number of days in attendance during the month 
in which the particular report is made. 

2296. Section 24. The State Board of Education is authorized, 
empowered, directed, and required, along with the State Commissioner 
of Education to co-operate with the Federal Board of Vocational Educa- 
tion in the administration of the provisions of the Smith-Hughes Voca- 
tional Education Act. The State of Delaware accepts the benefits of 
this act passed by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America, in Congress assembled, entitled: "An Act to provide 
for the promotion of vocational education; to provide for co-operation 
with the State in the promotion of such education in agriculture and the 
trades and industries; to provide for the co-operation with the State in 
the preparation of teachers of vocational subjects; and to appropriate 
money and regulate its expenditure," and will observe and comply with 



122 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

all the requirements of said Act, and the State Treasurer is hereby desig- 
nated as custodian of any funds accruing to the State from the aforesaid 
Act. 

2297. Section 25. The State Board of Education shall administer 
and enforce the law regulating the importation of dependent children, as 
given in Article 11 of this chapter. 

2298. Section 26. The State Board of Education shall conduct 
investigations relating to the educational needs of the State and the 
means of improving educational conditions; it may employ additional 
expert assistance for such investigations if needed, and appoint special 
agents for special investigations. 

2299. Section 27. The State Board of Education shall transmit 
biennially to the Governor and to the General Assembly, certified to by 
the State Commissioner of Education, an annual State public school 
budget, including the annual appropriation required for the State De- 
partment of Education, comprising the expenses of the State Board of 
Education, and the support and expenses of the Ofl&ce of the State Com- 
missioner of Education; the annual appropriation for the payment of 
the teachers' expenses for summer school attendance; the annual appro- 
priation for the encouragement of the consolidation of schools; the annual 
appropriation to meet the provisions of the Smith-Hughes Vocational 
Education Act; the annual appropriation for the payment of the salaries 
of county superintendents, county supervisors, and county attendance 
oflBcers; the annual appropriation for State aid to approved high schools; 
the annual appropriation for State aid to elementary schools; and such 
other appropriations as may be required for the support of the free public 
schools and the encouragement of public education. 

2300. Section 28. The State Board of Education shall submit each 
year, on or before the first day of January, to the Governor an annual 
report, prepared by the State Commissioner of Education and approved 
by the State Board of Education, covering all operations of the State 
Department of Education, and support, condition, progress, and needs 
of education throughout the State. Such annual report shall be printed 
in sufficient quantities for general distribution. 

2301. Section 29. It shall be the duty of the State Board of Educa- 
tion to consider the educational needs of the State, and to recommend to 
the Governor and the General Assembly such additional legislation, or 



APPENDIX 123 

changes in existing legislation, as may be deemed desirable. Such recom- 
mendations shall be in the fonn of prepared bills and shall be laid before 
the Governor and General Assembly. The State Board of Education 
and the State Commissioner of Education shall be given a hearing on the 
same by the committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives 
to which such bills are referred, if this is requested. 

2302. Section 30. The State Board of Education shall perform such 
other duties as are assigned to it elsewhere in this Chapter, or may be 
assigned to it from time to time by the General Assembly. 

Article 2. 
State Commissioner of Education 

2303. Section 31. The State Board of Education shall appoint a 
State Commissioner of Education for a term of two years and said Board 
shall fix his salary and pay same from the appropriation for the expenses 
and maintenance of the State Department of Education. He shall be a 
graduate of a standard college, have no less than two years of academic 
and professional graduate preparation in a standard university, and not 
less than seven years' experience in teaching and administration. Pro- 
vided that the present State Commissioner of Education shall serve to 
the end of the term for which he was originally appointed, and until a 
successor qualifies. The State Commissioner of Education may be 
removed by the Board for immorality, misconduct in ofl&ce, incompetency 
or wilful neglect of duty, upon making known to him, in writing, the 
charges against him, and upon giving him an opportunity of being heard, 
in person or by counsel, in his own defense, upon not less than ten days' 
notice. In case of vacancy due to any cause, the State Board of Educa- 
tion shall fill the vacancy, and the appointment shall.be for a full term, 
and until a successor shall qualify. 

2304. Section 32. The State Board of Education shall explain the 
true intent and meaning of the school laws and of the enacted and pub- 
lished by-laws or rules and regulations of the State Board of Education. 
It shall decide without expense to the parties concerned, all controversies 
and disputes involving the proper administration of the pubhc school 
system. The Commissioner of Education shall have authority to ad- 
minister oaths and to examine under oath, in any part of the State, wit- 



124 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

nesses in any matter pertaining to the public schools, and to cause the 
examination to be reduced to writing. Any person who, having been sworn 
or affirmed by him to tell the truth, and who wilfully gives false testimony, 
shall be guilty of false swearing and punished as perjury is punished. 

2305. Section s3- The State Commissioner of Education shall 
enforce all the provisions of this Chapter and the enacted and published 
by-laws or rules and regulations of the State Board of Education. He 
is empowered and directed to file charges with the State Board of Educa- 
tion and recommend for removal any school officer elected by popular 
vote or appointed under the provisions of this Chapter or special school 
law, for immorality, misconduct in office, insubordination, incompetency, 
or wilful neglect of duty. 

2306. Section 34. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
execute the educational policies of the State Board of Education. He 
shall call and conduct conferences of County School Boards, Boards 
of Education of special school districts. Boards of School Trustees, 
County Superintendents, Supervisors, Attendance Officers, Superinten- 
dents of schools of Special School Districts, Principals and Teachers, 
on matters related to the condition, needs and improvements of the 
schools. He shall prepare and publish the school laws of the State and 
by-laws or rules and regulations of the State Board of Education, and 
such pamphlets as will stimulate public interest, promote the work of 
education, and foster in teachers professional insight and efficiency. 
He shall receive and examine all the reports required under the rules 
and regulations of the State Board of Education, and in person, or 
through his assistants, shall examine the expenditures, business methods, 
and accounts of County School Boards of Education, of special school 
districts and advise them on the same. 

2307. Section 35. The State Commissioner of Education shall pre- 
pare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption, by 
the State Board of Education, rules and regulations for the hygienic, 
sanitary, and protective construction of school buildings. He is em- 
powered and directed to recommend for condemnation for school use by 
the State Board of Education all buildings used for school purposes that 
violate these rules and regulations. 

2308. Section 36. The State Commissioner of Education shall, 
subject to the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education, pass 



APPENDIX 125 

upon all proposals for the purchase of play grounds, school grounds or 
school sites, or buildings, and also upon all plans and specifications for 
the remodeling of old school buildings and the construction of new school 
buildings costing three hundred dollars ($300) or more. In case the con- 
struction is to be done by a County Board itself, or by a Board of Educa- 
tion of special school district, it shall be illegal for a County Board or 
Board of Education of a special district to proceed until the plans and 
specifications shall have been approved in writing by the State Com- 
missioner of Education; in case the construction is to be done by con- 
tract, the contract shall be invalid without the written approval of the 
State Commissioner of Education. 

2309. Section 37. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education^ rules and regulations for the protection 
of the health, physical welfare, and physical inspection of the school 
children of the State. 

2310. Section 38. The State Commissioner of Education shall pre- 
pare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption by 
the State Board of Education, rules and regulations for grading and 
standardizing all public schools of an elementary and high school grade; 
also for limiting, on the basis of the equipment and number of teachers 
employed, the years and grade of instruction that may be offered in such 
schools. He shall also prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for 
approval and adoption by the State Board of Education, the minimum 
requirements for issuing all certificates, diplomas, and academic, colleg- 
iate, professional, or university degrees. 

23 11. Section 39. The State Commissioner of Education sl^ 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, minimum courses of study for the 
different grades and kinds of public elementary schools, high schools, and, 
in co-operation with the President of Delaware College and the Dean 
of the Women's College of Delaware, minimum courses of study for 
normal schools, and also college courses for teachers. 

2312. Section 40. The State Commissioner of Education shall pre- 
pare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption by 
the State Board of Education, lists of text-books to be used in all public 
elementary schools and all public high schools of the State. 



126 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

2313. Section 41. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, rules and regulations governing the 
certification of teachers and the holding of teachers' examinationg. Sub- 
ject to the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education, and 
the provisions of Article 8 of this Chapter, he shall certificate all teachers 
in the public schools of the State of an elementary and high school grade. 

2314. Section 42. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, rules and regulations under which 
teachers now employed and prospective teachers may attend summer 
school and receive from the State the whole or a part of the expenses 
incurred by such summer school attendance. 

2315. Section 43. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval, and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, rules and regulations fixing the date 
for the opening and closing of the several terms of the school year, the 
hours of the daily school sessions, holidays on which the schools shall be 
closed, the pay of teachers during absence because of sickness or quaran- 
tine, or when the schools are closed by quarantine, and the forms of con- 
tract that shall be executed between Boards of Education and all regular 
employees. 

2316. Section 44. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, rules and regulations, in agreement 
with Section 122 of this Chapter setting forth the conditions which must 
be met and fulfilled in order that cities and towns may exercise and con- 
tinue to exercise the privileges of a special school district and operate 
their respective schools according to the provisions of Articles 5 and 6 
of this chapter. The State Commissioner of Education shall annually 
inspect the management, conduct and work of the schools of each special 
school district, and in case of violations of the enacted rules and regula- 
tions of the State Board of Education and the provisions of Section 122 
of this Chapter, he shall recommend to the State Board of Education that 
the given special school district be dropped from the list of cities and 
towns exercising the privileges of a special school district and of opera- 
ting their respective schools according to the provisions of articles 5 and 



APPENDIX 127 

6 of this Chapter. "When application is made to the State Board of 
Education by a city or town to be erected into a special school district, 
the State Commissioner of Education shall investigate the management, 
conduct and work of the schools of the said city or town, report his find- 
ings, and make recommendations to the State Board of Education as to 
the granting or denial of the petition. 

2317. Section 45. The State Commissioner of Education shall pre- 
pare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for the approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, rules and regulations, in agreement with 
the provisions of Article 12 of this Chapter, setting forth the conditions 
which must be met and fulfilled in order that high schools may receive 
the respective amounts of State aid provided for in Article 12 of this 
Chapter. Subject to the enacted rules and regulations of the State 
Board of Education, and the provisions of Article 12 of this Chapter, the 
State Commissioner of Education shall aimually inspect the manage- 
ment, conduct, and work of each high school receiving State aid accord- 
ing to the provisions of Article 12 of this Chapter. In case of violations 
of the enacted rules and regulations of the State Board of Education and 
the provisions of Article 12 of this Chapter, the State Commissioner of 
Education shall recommend to the State Board of Education that such 
high schools be dropped from the Mst of high schools receiving State 
aid according to the provisions of Article 12 of this Chapter, When 
application is made to the State Board of Education that a given high 
school be included in the list of high schools receiving State aid according 
to the provisions of Article 12 of this Chapter, the State Commissioner 
of Education shall investigate the management, conduct, and work of the 
given high school, report his findings, and make recommendations to 
the State Board of Education as to the granting or denial of the petition. 

2318. Section 46. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, rules and regulations governing the 
admission of pupils from schools under the control of County Boards of 
Education into the schools of special school districts, and the rate of 
tuition to be paid for the instruction of pupils so admitted. 

2319. Section 47. When a County Board of Education shall make 
application for the State aid, as provided for in section 19 of this Chapter, 
the State Commissioner of Education shall examine the proposed plans 



128 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

for the new grounds, buildings, and equipment, report his findings, and 
make recommendations to the State Board of Education as to the grant- 
ing or denial of the petition. 

2320. Section 48. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, rules and regulations for the taking of a 
biennial school census of all children in the State between six and eigh- 
teen years of age, inclusive, also the forms and blanks to be employed 
in taking such census and in compiling the reports thereon. This school 
census shall be taken under the direction of the State Commissioner of 
Education, first in the year 1920 and every two years thereafter. The 
State Commissioner of Education may cause the whole or any part of the 
school census of any county or any special school district to be retaken 
at any time, if, in his judgment, the whole or any part of such census has 
not been properly or correctly taken. 

2321. Section 49. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, rules and regulations for the enforce- 
ment of school attendance, as provided for in Article 10 of this Chapter. 

2322. Section 50. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, a uniform series of forms and blanks for 
the use of County Boards of Education, Boards of Education of special 
districts. Boards of School Trustees, school officials, and teachers, and it 
shall be his duty to see that all financial accounts, including school bud- 
get, and all educational records are so kept and that all reports are made 
according to these forms and blanks. He shall also prepare, or cause to 
be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption by the State Board 
of Education, forms and blanks to be used in the annual report and in the 
monthly reports required of persons conducting private schools and of 
private educational associations, corporations, or institutions. 

2323. Section 51. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, plans and rules and regulations for the 
administration of the provisions of the Smith-Hughes Vocational Ed- 
ucation Act. 

2324. Section 52. The State Commissioner of Education shall pre- 



APPENDIX 129 

pare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption by 
the State Board of Education, rules and regulations for the enforcement 
of the law regulating the importation of dependent children, as given in 
Article 11 of this Chapter. 

2325. Section 53. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
propose from time to time to the State Board of Education, and submit 
or its approval and authorization, investigations into the educational 
needs of the State, and into means of improving educational conditions. 

2326. Section 54. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, the annual report of the State Board of 
Education and shall submit on or before the first day of December the 
same to the Board for its approval and adoption; he shall also prepare, 
or cause to be prepared, all other reports which are or may be required 
of this board. 

2326-1. Section 55. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption 
by the State Board of Education, the annual State public school budget. 

2326-2. Section 56. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit prior to the regular meeting 
of the General Assembly for approval and adoption by the State Board 
of Education, such legislative measures as are, in his opinion, needed to 
further the development and to improve the free public schools of the 
State. 

2326-3. Section 57. The State Commissioner of Education, acting 
under the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education, shall 
be responsible for the administration of the State Department of Educa- 
tion, and shall have general supervision of all the professional and clerical 
assistants of the department. He shall nominate for appointment by 
the State Board of Education and fix the salaries of, subject to the ap- 
proval of the Board, aU the professional and clerical assistants of the 
Department and may recommend their dismissal for inunorality, mis- 
conduct in ofl&ce, insubordination, incompetency, or wilful neglect of duty. 

2326-4. Section 58. The State Department of Education shall 
hereafter be provided with at least the following clerical and professional 
assistants: 

I. Two stenographers for the correspondence of the State Board of 
Education and of the State Commissioner of Education. 



I30 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

2. One record clerk in charge of all records and reports. 

3. One professional assistant having charge of statistical tabulations 
and the compilation of reports, and who shall perform such other duties 
as may be assigned him by the State Commissioner of Education. 

4. And such other clerical and professional assistants as may be 
authorized by the State Board of Education on the recommendation of 
the State Commissioner of Education, within the limits of the appro- 
priation for the State Department of Education. 

2326-5. Section 59. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
perform such other duties as are assigned to him elsewhere in this Chap- 
ter, or may be assigned to him from time to time by the State Board of 
Education and by the General Assembly, 

Article 3 
County Boards of Education 

2326-6. Section 60. The general administration and supervision of 
the free public schools and the educational interests of each county, with 
the exception of the special school districts, hereinafter created and des- 
ignated, shall be vested in a County Board of Education. The County 
Board of Education shall be composed of three members. They shall be 
elected from the residents of the county, outside of the several special 
districts in the county, by the male residents, qualiSed as hereinafter 
provided, and by women who have paid a tax at any time during the 
preceding twelve months on real or personal property, at a special election 
for terms of three years beginning with the first day of July next succeed- 
ing their election, and shall hold office until their respective successors 
qualify. 

Residents of special school districts shall not vote for members of the 
County Board of Education, but may vote for members of the Board of 
Education of their respective special school district. The County school 
election, herein provided for, shall be held on the third Saturday of June 
in each year, between the hours of two and four o'clock in the afternoon, 
and shall be conducted by members of the Board of School Trustees of 
the several school attendance districts. The President of the Board of 
Trustees of each school attendance district shall preside at the election, 
and the other two members of the Board shall be the Judges of the dec- 



APPENDIX 131 

tion. Provided that if, for any reason, one or more of the members 
of the Board of School Trustees of any school attendance district should 
be unable to serve as election ofl&cers, the Board of School Trustees of 
such school attendance district, shall designate another person, or per- 
sons, to act in such capacity, and provided further that should the Board 
of School Trustees of any school attendance district fail, or neglect to act 
as election ofl&cers at any such election, or to provide other persons to act 
as such election ofl&cers, the voters present shall designate and appoint 
election ofl&cers to conduct the election in such school attendance district. 

The County School Election shall be by ballot and the names of the 
candidates for election to the County Board of Education shall be entered 
on the ballot alphabetically, and without party designation. Nomina- 
tions shall be made by petition, containing the written names of not less 
than twenty-five qualified voters of the respective county, outside of the 
special school districts in the county, and such petition shall be filed with 
the Clerk of the Peace not later than fifteen days prior to the time of the 
school election. The ballots and other needed election supplies shall be 
provided by the Clerk of the Peace. 

Women entitled to vote at the County School Election shall be per- 
mitted to do so on presentation of a tax receipt for ta:ses assessed against 
them, within the preceding 12 months. Any male resident of the said 
school attendance district who would be entitled at the time of the hold- 
ing of the said school election to register and vote in any election district, 
of which said attendance district is a part, at a general election, if such 
general election were to be held at the time of such school election, shall 
be deemed to be a qualified voter at the school election in the school 
attendance district where he then resides. The method of voting at 
such school election shall be that the voter shall indicate the candidate or 
candidates for whom he desires to vote by marking in front or after the 
name or names of such candidate or candidates a cross mark in pencil 
upon said ballot. If any person, not duly qualified to vote, shall offer 
to vote at a County School election, or shall offer to vote in more than 
one school attendance district in such election, he shall be guilty of a 
misdemeanor, and shall be punished by fine or imprisonment, or both, 
in the discretion of the Court. The election officers in each school at- 
tendance district shaU ascertain the result of the election in their re- 
spective school attendance districts, and shall certify in duplicate the 



1321 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

result of said election, under their hands, and the presiding ofBcer at such 
election shall immediately forward one of said certificates to the State 
Board of Education at Dover, and shall retain in his custody the other 
of said certificates, together, with the ballots cast at said election until 
after the canvass of the vote by the State Board of Education. 

On Thursday succeeding such election, the State Board of Education 
shall meet at Dover, as a Board of Canvass, and shall publicly ascertain 
and announce the result of the election in the respective counties of the 
State. If the presiding officer of the election in any school attendance 
district shall neglect to forward the certificate of the result of 
said election, as heretofore specified, he shall be guilty of a misde- 
meanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined or imprisoned, or both, 
in the discretion of the Court. When this Act goes into effect the terms 
of office of the persons who are at that time members of the County School 
Commissions shall automatically expire, but such members of the Com- 
mission shall be qualified for appointment and election under the pro- 
visions of this Section, except in such cases as they are disqualified by the 
provisions of this section. When this Act goes into effect, the Governor 
shall as soon as possible thereafter appoint from the qualified voters of 
the county, outside of the special school districts, three members to the 
County Board of Education, who shall take office immediately and serve 
until the first day of July, 1920, and untU their successors qualify. At 
the school election of 1920, three members shall be elected to the County 
Board of Education; one to serve for one year, or until the first day of 
July, 1921; one to serve for two years, or until the first day of July, 1922, 
and one to serve for three years, or until the first day of July, 1923, and 
until their respective successors qualify. Provided that in the first elec- 
tion, under the provisions of this Section, the candidate receiving the 
highest number of votes shall be declared elected for three years; the 
candidate receiving the next highest number of votes shall be declared 
elected for two years and the candidate receiving the next highest num- 
ber of votes shall be declared elected for one year. Thereafter one mem- 
ber shall be elected each year for the full term of three years. The 
members of the County Board of Education shall be chosen solely because 
of their character and fitness; but no person shall be appointed or elected 
to this Board under the provisions of this Section who is in any way sub- 
ject to the authority of this Board. Vacancies in this Board for any cause 



APPENDIX 133 

shall be filled by the State Board of Education, such appointees serving 
until the next school election succeeding such appointment or appoint- 
ments, the vacancy or vacancies shall be filled for the remainder of the 
respective unexpired term or terms. Any member of the County Board 
of Education shall be eligible for re-election, unless otherwise disqualified 
by the provisions of this section. 

2326-7. Section 61. The oflSces of the County Board of Education 
shall be at the County seat of the respective county. These officers shall 
be provided and furnished by the Levy Court of the respective counties, 
but the County Board of Education may provide its own office. The 
County Board of Education shall hold its annual meeting each year at 
its office on the first day of July. At this meeting the Board shall each 
year elect one of its members to serve as President and one to serve as 
Vice-President. Other regular meetings shall be held on the second Fri- 
day of September, December, and March, and such special meetings may 
be held and at such places as the duties of the business of the Board may 
require. The rules generally adopted by deliberative bodies for their 
government shall be observed by the County Boards of Education. No 
motion or resolution shall be declared adopted without the concurrence 
of a majority of the whole Board. 

2326-8. Section 62. The members of the County Board of Educa- 
tion shall receive as compensation ten (10) dollars per day for each day's 
attendance at the meetings of said Board, provided that they shall not 
receive pay for more than one day's attendance in each calendar month, 
and shall also receive necessary traveling expenses incidental to attending 
the meetings and transacting the business of the board within the 
County. 

2326-9. Section 63. The County Board of Education shall appoint, 
subject to the provisions of Section 89 of this Chapter, as its executive 
officer a County Superintendent of Schools, who shall also be the Secre- 
tary of the County Board of Education. As Secretary he shall conduct 
all correspondence of the Board, keep and preserve all of its records, 
receive all reports required by the Board, and see that such reports are 
in proper form, complete and accurate. He shall attend all meetings of 
the Board and of its committees, except when his own tenure, his salary, 
or the administration of his office are under discussion, and shall have 
the right to advise on any question under consideration but shall have no 



134 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

vote. In case the ojB&ce of the County Superintendent of Schools is tem- 
porarily vacant, or when the County Superintendent is absent by reason 
of the nature of business in hand, or otherwise, the Board shall appoint 
one of its members to act for the time being as Secretary. 

2326-10. Section 64. The County Treasurer shall be the Treasurer 
of the County Board of Education. He shall receive and hold all moneys 
to which the County Board of Education is entitled by law and which may 
come into its possession, and shall deposit all such moneys in the financial 
institution which is the legal depository of State moneys in the custody 
of the State Treasurer. He shall pay out all such moneys on the written 
order of the President of the County Board of Education and of its Secre- 
tary, and shall keep such records and accounts of its funds as shall be 
required by the State Board of Education. 

2326-11. Section 65. The County Board of Education is hereby 
vested with all the powers necessary or proper for the control and man- 
agement of the free public schools under their jurisdiction, subject to the 
limitations and restrictions prescribed in this Act. 

2326-12. Section 66. All the property, estate, effects, money, funds, 
claims, and State Donations heretofore vested by law in the public school 
authorities of any county, for the benefit of the free public schools of said 
county, are hereby placed under and subject to the control and manage- 
ment of the County Board of Education of such County. Real and 
personal estate granted, conveyed, devised, or bequeathed for the use 
of any county shall be held in trust by the County Board of Education for 
the benefit of the schools of such county, and such grants, bequests, and 
money invested in trust shall be exempt from all State, county and local 
taxes. 

2326-13. Section 67. With the enactment of this Act and im- 
mediately after the expiration of the present school year, June 30th, 19 19, 
all the governing and administrative school boards and committees of 
every school district in this State including all school districts created, 
united or consolidated by special Act prior to the approval of this Act 
which have accepted the provisions of this Act as hereinafter set forth 
in this Section (except the Boards of Education of such special school 
districts as are hereinafter provided for and designated) are abolished 
and the jurisdiction of the free public schools in such districts, shall pass 
to the County Board of Education, as authorized, constituted and em- 



APPENDIX 135; 

powered by this Chapter, and become integral parts of the county school 
system. As soon after June 30th, 1919, as the Auditor of Accounts shall 
have audited the records and accounts of the several District School Com- 
mittees and Boards of Education hereby abolished, aU school property 
held by such District School Committees and Boards of Education and 
all their assets shaU be under the administration, management and con- 
trol of the County Board of Education, subject to all legal liabilities. 
Real and personal estates granted, conveyed, devised, or bequeathed for 
the use of any particular school district shall be held in trust by the 
County Board of Education for the benefit of the schools of such dis- 
trict, and such grants and bequests or money invested in trust shall be 
exempt from State, County, and local taxes. 

The Board of Education or School Committee of every District in this 
State which was created, united or consolidated by special Act prior to 
the approval of this Act is hereby authorized and empowered in the 
name of and for such District to accept the provisions of this Act by a 
resolution of a majority of the members of such Board or Committee 
adopted prior to the thirtieth day of June, 1919, and a written copy of 
such resolution certified by the Clerk or Secretary of the said Board or 
Committee filed with the Secretary of the State Board of Education to- 
gether with a duplicate copy filed with the Trustee of the School Fund 
on or before the said thirtieth day of June, 1919, shall be deemed and 
taken to be conclusive evidence of the acceptance by the said District of 
the provisions of this Act; provided that the State Board of Education 
may, for good cause, shown, extend the time for the adoption of such 
resolution and for the filing of such copies in the discretion of the said 
State Board. 

2326-14. Section 68. The County Board of Education is authorized, 
empowered, directed, and required to maintain a uniform, equal and 
effective system of free public schools throughout the county, and shall 
cause the provisions of this Chapter, the by-laws or rules and regulations 
and the policies of the State Board of Education to be carried into effect. 
The schools provided shall be of two kinds, those for white children and 
those for colored children. The schools for white children shall be free 
to all white children between the ages of six and twenty-one years, in- 
clusive, and the schools for colored children shaU be free to all colored 
children between the ages of six and twenty-one years, inclusive. The 



136 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

schools for white children shall be numbered No. i, No. 2, etc., and the 
schools for colored children shall be similarly numbered No. i, No. 2, etc. 
The free public schools of the County shall include elementary schools, 
that is, grades i to 8, inclusive, and high schools, that is, grades 9 to 12, 
inclusive, provided, if it seem undesirable for any reason to maintain a 
standard four year high school in any school attendance district, the 
County Board of Education in lieu thereof shall pay, if need be, the 
tuition of the children of such school attendance district in the nearest 
standard four year high school by direct traveled highway. A County 
Board of Education may establish kindergartens and playgrounds, and 
it may establish on the recommendation of the County Superintendent 
of Schools and, subject to the approval of the State Commissioner of 
Education, such other types of schools as in its judgment will promote the 
educational interests of the County. The school year in all regular day 
elementary schools and all regular day high schools of the County out- 
side of the special school districts shall be not less than one hundred and 
eighty (180) days, beginning on the first Tuesday after the first Monday 
in September. 

2326-15. Section 69. The County Board of Education shall exercise, 
through its executive officer, the County Superintendent of Schools, and his 
professional assistants, control and supervision over the public school 
system of the County. The Board shall consult and advise, through its 
executive officer and his professional assistants, with the Boards of 
School Trustees, principals, teachers, and interested citizens, and shall seelr 
in every way to promote the interests of the schools under its jurisdiction, 

2326-16. Section 70. The County Board of Education shall de- 
termine, on the recommendation of the County Superintendent of Schools 
and subject to the provision of this Chapter and to the rules and regula- 
tions and the policies of the State Board of Education, the educational 
policies of the County and shall prescribe rules and regulations for the 
conduct and management of the schools. 

2326-17. Section 71. The County Board of Education shall, on the 
recommendation of the County Superintendent of Schools, divide the 
county into appropriate and convenient school attendance districts, 
shall keep full and complete records of the boundaries thereof, and shall 
locate and maintain schools, as needed, in each school attendance district. 
Provided that when there is no public elementary school within two (2) 



APPENDIX 137, 

miles, by direct traveled highway, of the home of a child who has not 
completed the sixth grade of the elementary school, the County Board of 
Education shall arrange, through the County Superintendent of Schools, 
when possible without charge to the County, and may pay when 
necessary, for the transportation of such child to and from the nearest 
public school. 

2326-18. Section 72. The County Board of Education is authorized, 
empowered, directed, and required to provide ample, appropriate, and 
suitable grounds, buildings, and equipment for all the needed schools of 
the County, conforming to the rules and regulations of the State Board 
of Education for the hygienic, sanitary, and protective construction of 
school buildings. The County Board of Education is authorized and 
empowered, on the recommendation of the County Superintendent of 
Schools and the approval of the State Commissioner of Education to 
purchase playgrounds, school grounds or school sites, and buildings, and 
to sell the same when no longer needed for educational purposes; to rent, 
repair, improve, and construct school buildings, or approve contracts 
for so doing, when the plans conform to the rules and regulations of the 
State Board of Education and are approved by the State Commissioner 
of Education. The County Board of Education shall employ an 
architect or architects, on the recommendation of the County Superin- 
tent of Schools, to assist in the preparation of plans and specifications 
for remodeling old buildings and for constructing new buildings, but the 
architect or architects employed shall be approved by the State Board of 
Education. 

The County Board of Education may receive donations of playgrounds, 
school grounds and school sites, or of houses already built suitably lo- 
cated and adapted to school purposes, but in no case shall any site be 
built upon, or any house occupied, until a good and suflScient title has 
been obtained for the same in the corporate name of the Board. 

"When lands shall be required for the site of a school house, or for en- 
larging a schoolhouse lot, or for playgrounds or other school purposes, 
and the County Board of Education shall for any cause be unable to con- 
tract with the owner or owners thereof upon what they deem to be a fair 
valuation thereof, the County Board of Education may institute con- 
demnation proceedings; but no lot so taken or enlarged shall exceed, in the 
whole, ten (10) acres, including the land occupied by the school building. 



138 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

Whenever it shall be necessary to institute condemnation proceedings, 
to acquire any land for school purposes, as provided in this section, the 
County Board of Education may apply to the Associate Judge of the State 
of Delaware, resident in the county where any such land is located, for 
the conderonation thereof, and the said Resident Judge shall thereupon 
appoint five judicious and impartial freeholders residing in the special 
districts of said county, or in one, or more of said special districts, to view 
the premises and assess the damages which the owner, or owners, will 
sustain by reason of the taking of the said lands for the purposes afore- 
said. The freeholders shall be sworn or affirmed faithfully and im- 
partially to perform the duties assigned them. They shall give ten days' 
notice, in writing, to the owner, or owners of the premises proposed to be 
condemned, if within the State, and to the said County Board of the time 
of their meeting to view the premises and assess damages. If the owner, 
or owners, reside outside of the State, or if under any legal disability, and 
have no legal representative in the State, publication of such notice shall 
be made in some newspaper in the county in which proceedings were 
instituted, at least ten days prior to the date fixed for said meeting, and 
such publication shall be sufficient notice thereof. The said freeholders 
shall ascertain and assess the damages to the owner or owners, taking 
into consideration all circumstances of convenience or injury, but shall 
allow, at least, the cash value of the land taken, and shall certify their 
award to the owner or owners, and, also, to the County Board, and shall 
return a record of theur proceedings, with their finding and award to the 
Prothonotary of the County in which the proceedings are instituted. If 
the said freeholders should be guilty of misconduct in their proceedings, 
or if they should make a grossly improper award, the said Judge shall, on 
appUcation, set aside their award and shall appoint other freeholders in 
their place, who shall proceed anew in the manner hereinbefore provided, 
and in like manner may set aside their finding or award, or the finding or 
award of freeholders subsequently appointed for the purposes aforesaid, 
until a fair and equitable award has been made or accepted. The said 
Judge may substitute other freeholders in the place of any freeholder who 
for any reason may be unable to serve. When the amount of damages 
has been ascertained, the said County Board of Education may pay, or 
tender the amount thereof, within two months, to the person or persons 
entitled thereto, or if, for any reason, payment can not be made to the 



APPENDIX 139 

owner or owners, the amount of said damages may be deposited to the 
credit of the persons entitled thereto in the Farmers Bank of the State 
of Delaware, at the County seat of the County in which said proceedings 
are instituted, and thereupon the said lands may be taken and occupied 
for the use and purpose for which said lands were condemned. The said 
freeholders shall be allowed three dollars ($3.00) per day for their ser- 
vices, which sum, together with other expenses of the condemnation pro- 
ceedings, shall be paid by the County Board of Education of the respec- 
tive county. 

If for any reason the current income of a County Board of Education 
is inadequate to provide ample, appropriate and suitable grounds, build- 
ings, and equipment for all the needed schools of the county, the County 
Board of Education is authorized, and empowered, on the recommenda- 
tion of the County Superintendent of Schools, to issue bonds on the 
credit of the county, exclusive of the special school districts herein pro- 
vided for and designated or hereafter to be created, in amounts sufficient 
to provide ample, appropriate, and suitable grounds, buildings, and equip- 
ment for all the needed schools of the county. Provided that the County 
Board of Education shall not be authorized to issue bonds for the pur- 
pose of this section in a greater amount in the aggregate than five per 
cent., (s%) of the assessed value of the real estate of the County outside 
of the special districts. Provided further that the funds derived from 
such bond issues shall be used only to provide or purchase new grounds, 
new buildings, and new permanent equipment. Such bonds shall not 
be issued or sold at less than their face value, and shall be issued in 
series, with no bond of any given series running more than twenty-five 
(25) years. The bonds provided for in this section shall be in such de- 
nomination or denominations, in such form, and shall bear such rate of 
interest, not exceeding six per cent, per annum, as shall be determined 
by the County Board of Education of the respective county. The said 
bonds shall be signed by the President and other members of the said 
County Board of Education. The County Board of Education is author- 
ized to adopt a seal to be used in the execution of said bonds. The faith 
and credit of the school districts under the jurisdiction of the said County 
Board of Education shall be deemed to be pledged by every such bond. 
The said bonds shall be denominated as of the county in which they are 
issued, shall be of the series of the year in which they are issued, and the 



I40 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

principal and interest shall be made payable at the branch of the I'armers 
Bank in the county in which said bonds are issued, and the said bonds 
shall be exempted from all State, County or Municipal taxes. Provided 
further the County Board of Education shall in its current school budget 
hereinafter provided for, under the item, " Debt Service," make provisions 
for the payment of the current interest on each and every series of 
bonds issued, and also for the payment or liquidation, each year of not 
less than one- twenty-fifth (1-25) of each and every series of bonds issued. 

2326-19. Section 73. Schools on or near the division line of two 
counties shall be free to the children of each county; and the County 
Boards of Education of the respective counties shall have power to pro- 
vide jointly for the maintenance of said schools. 

2326-20. Section 74. The County Board of Education shall pre- 
scribe, on the recommendation of the County Superintendent of Schools 
and subject to the provisions of this Chapter and the policies and rules 
and regulations of the State Board of Education, the conditions on which 
pupils in elementary schools, limited to the first six grades of elementary 
instruction, shall be admitted to elementary schools giving the two higher 
grades of elementary instruction. Where the distance from the homes 
of the respective children concerned to such complete elementary schools 
is in excess of three (3) miles by direct traveled highway, the County 
Board of Education shall arrange, through the County Superintendent, 
when possible without charge to the County, and may pay when neces- 
sary, for the transportation of such children to and from such elementary 
schools. 

2326-21. Section 75. The County Board of Education shall pre- 
scribe, on the recommendation of the County Superintendent of Schools, 
and subject to the provisions of this Chapter and the policies and rules 
and regulations of the State Board of Education, the conditions on which 
children may be admitted to the high schools of the county and also the 
conditions on which children may be admitted to the high schools of 
special school districts and have their tuition in such high schools paid 
by the County Board of Education. When such high schools, whether 
under the jurisdiction of the County Board of Education or in special 
school districts are in excess of three (3) miles by direct traveled highway 
from the home of the respective children concerned, the County Board 
of Education shall arrange, through the County Superintendent of 



APPENDIX 141 

Schools, when possible without charge to the county, and may pay when 
necessary, for the transportation of such children to and from such high 
schools. 

2326-22. Section 76. The County Board of Education shall, on 
the recommendation of the County Superintendent of Schools and when, 
in the Board's judgment, it is practicable, consolidate schools. When the 
distance from the homes of the respective children concerned to such 
consolidated school is in excess of two (2) miles by direct traveled high- 
way, the County Board of Education shall arrange, through the County 
Superintendent of Schools, when possible without charge to the county, 
and may pay when necessary, for the transportation of such children to 
and from such consolidated schools. Provided that the County Board 
of Education shall not be responsible for the transportation of children 
to and from such consolidated schools who have completed the sixth 
grade of the elementary school, unless the consolidated school is in ex- 
cess of three (3) miles by direct traveled highway from the homes of the 
respective children concerned. 

2326-23. Section 77. The County Board of Education shall not 
maintain any single one room school, without the written approval of 
the State Commissioner of Education, which during the three (3) preced- 
ing school years has had an average daily attendance of less than twelve 
(12) pupils. But when such a school is closed, the County Board of 
Education shall arrange, through the County Superintendent of Schools, 
when possible without charge to the county, and shall pay when neces- 
sary, for the transportation of the children concerned to and from the 
nearest school maintained by the Board. Provided that the County 
Board of Education shall not be responsible for the transportation ot 
such children unless the distance from the homes of the respective children 
concerned to the nearest school maintained by the Board, is by direct 
traveled highway, in excess of two (2) miles, and shall not be responsible 
for the transportation of such children in grades above the sixth, imless 
the distance is in excess of three (3) miles. 

2326-24. Section 78. The County Board of Education, subject to 
the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regulations of 
the State Board of Education, shall, on the written recommendation of 
the County Superintendent of Schools, grade and standardize all the 
schools under its jurisdiction. 



142 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

2326-25. Section 79. The County Board of Education, subject 
to the provisions of this Chapter, the rules and regulations, prescribed 
courses of study, and the policies of the State Board of Education, shall 
prescribe on the written recommendation of the County Superintendent 
of Schools, courses of study for the schools under its jurisdiction, and a 
printed copy of these courses of study shall be supplied to every teacher 
and to every interested citizen of the County. 

2326-26. Section 80. The County Board of Education shall, on 
the written recommendation of the County Superintendent of Schools 
appoint all principals, teachers, and all other regular employees, and fix 
their salaries, subject to the provisions of Article 9 of this Chapter. The 
County Board of Education may suspend or dismiss any principal or 
teacher or other regular employees so appointed, on the written recom- 
mendation of the County Superintendent of Schools, for immorality, 
misconduct in office, incompetency, or wilful neglect of duty. Provided 
that in case of a principal or teacher or supervisor or attendance officer 
the charges be stated in writing, and that the principal or teacher or 
supervisor or attendance officer be given an opportunity to be heard by 
the Board upon not less than ten days' notice; provided further that in 
all cases when the Board is not unanimous in its decisions to suspend or 
dismiss, the right of appeal shall lie to the State Board of Education. 
The contract of every principal, teacher, supervisor, attendance officer, 
and other regular employees shall be for the school year, beginning July 
I St and ending June 30th, except when they are employed after the 
beginning of the school year, when contracts shall be for the remainder 
of the school year. 

2326-27. Section 81. The County Board of Education shall select 
and adopt, on the written recommendation of the County Superintendent 
of Schools, from the textbook list prescribed by the State Board of Edu- 
cation, purchase and distribute free of charge to all day elementary, and 
all day high school pupils, such textbooks as are necessary to carry out 
the adopted courses of study, provided that textbooks so selected and 
adopted shall not be changed more often than once in three (3) years. 
The County Board of Education shall also select and purchase, on the 
written recommendation of the County Superintendent of Schools, such 
supplementary readers, maps, globes and charts, materials of instruction, 
stationery and school supplies, school furniture, educational equipment, 



APPENDIX 143 

apparatus, and supplies as are necessary to the work of the schools, and 
no charge shall be made either day elementary or day high school pupils 
for the use of such supplies or equipment. 

2326-28. Section 82. The County Board of Education, subject to 
the provisions of this Chapter and the rules and regulations of the State 
Board of Education, shall prescribe, on the recommendation of the 
County Superintendent of Schools, forms and blanks on which Boards 
of Trustees, supervisors, attendance ofl&cers, principals, teachers, janitors, 
and other regular employees shall make such reports as may be required 
from them, on the recommendation of the County Superintendent, by 
the County Board of Education. 

2326-29. Section 83. The County Board of Education is authorized, 
empowered, directed, and required to provide ample funds for the main- 
tenance and operation of uniform, equal, and eflScient schools throughout 
the county. Each year, beginning with 1920, prior to the usual date on 
which the Levy Courts of the respective counties levy other county 
taxes, the County Board of Education shall prepare, subject to the rules 
and regulations of the State Board of Education and on the recommenda- 
tion of the County Superintendent of Schools, an itemized and detailed 
annual school budget. This annual school budget shall show the amount 
needed during the succeeding school year for (i) debt service, as provided 
for in Section 72 of this Chapter; (2) permanent improvements and 
repairs; and (3) current maintenance and operation, including the trans- 
portation of school children. The annual school budget shall also show 
the estimated amount that will be received from the State for (i) aiding 
elementary school, which amount shall be used for paying elementary 
teachers' salaries and the purchasing free text-books, materials of in- 
struction and school supplies; (2) aiding high schools, which amount 
shall be used for paying high school teachers' salaries and purchasing 
free text-books, materials of instruction, and school supplies; (3) the 
estimated amount of high school aid that will be received by reason of 
the provisions of the Smith-Hughes Vocational Education Act; (4) 
the estimated amount that will be received in payment of the salary of 
the County Superintendent of Schools, supervisors, and attendance 
officers; (5) the estimated income of the Board other than from county 
taxation; and (6) the estimated amount that will need to be raised by 
county taxation. Taxes for county school purposes shall be of two 



144 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

kinds: (i) a capitation tax, the amount of which shall be fixed annually 
by the County Board of Education and stated in its annual school bud- 
get, but which shall not be less than three dollars ($3) nor more than 
six dollars ($6) annually, and shall be levied on the person of all male 
residents of the school districts of the county under the jurisdiction of 
the County Board of Education, twenty-one years of age or over; (2) 
a property tax to be levied on the assessed value, as determined and 
fixed for other county taxation purposes, of the personal and real property 
in and of the school districts under the jurisdiction of the County Board 
of Education, provided for or that may hereafter be created, provided 
that said tax so levied shall not exceed one and one-half per cent, of the 
assessed value of the property in the county other than in the special 
districts subject to taxation as aforesaid. This annual school budget 
shall be submitted, in writing, not less than ten (10) days before the usual 
date for levying other county taxes, to the Levy Court of the respective 
county; at the same time a written copy of this annual school budget 
shall be submitted to the State Commissioner of Education. The Levy 
Court of the respective county is authorized, empowered, directed, and 
required to levy and to collect, at the time of collection and through the 
collector or collectors of other county taxes, the capitation tax as fixed 
and specified in the annual school budget of the County Board of Educa- 
tion, and to levy and collect such tax, at the time of collection and through 
the collector or collectors of the other county taxes, on the assessed value, 
as determined and fixed for other county taxation purposes, of all per- 
sonal and real property of the county subject to the county school tax 
aforesaid, as shall produce the remainder and the total amounts required 
by the County Board of Education to be raised by county taxation. All 
the powers and remedies, now or hereafter vested by law in the collector 
or collectors of taxes for County purposes, is hereby vested in the said 
collector or collectors in the collection of the County school tax, levied 
under the provisions of this Section. The County school tax so levied 
and collected, after deducting the fees for the collection if any, shall be 
turned over by the collector or collectors immediately on collection to 
the Treasurer of the County Board of Education. On the tax bills 
presented to the taxpayers of the county, the county school tax shall 
appear as a separate item, entitled "County School Tax," and shall 
show as sub items and separately the amount of capitation tax and the 



APPENDIX 145 

amount of personal and real property tax. Provided that for the school 
year 1919-20, the County Board of Education shall prepare the annual 
school budget for the school year 1919-20 and present it as soon as possi- 
ble after July i, 1919, to the Levy Court of the respective County, and 
that the amount required to be raised by county taxation shaU be levied 
and collected, as provided for, beginning with 1920, in this Section, by 
the Levy Court at the time local school taxes are now levied and collected 
under the existing laws. All taxes received by the County Board of 
Education shall be expended by them in accordance with the items of its 
annual school budget. 

2326-30. Section 84. If for any reason the current funds on hand 
are not sufl&cient to meet the current expenses of the Board, the County 
Board of Education, on the recommendation of the County Superinten- 
dent of Schools, may borrow money on the credit of the county to meet 
such current expenses, provided that all such current loans shall be paid 
within the school year in which such current loans are made and shall be 
paid from the funds derived from the taxes levied and collected for the 
current support of the schools within the given school year, and provided 
further that the amount so borrowed shall at no time exceed ten per cent. 
(10%) of the sum estimated for current expenses as shown by the school 
budget for that year. 

23=26-31. Section 85. The Auditor of Accounts shall each year as 
soon as possible after July ist audit the business and financial transac- 
tions of the County Board of Education and the records and accounts 
of its Treasurer, and the County Board of Education shall publish the 
results of this audit. 

2326-32. Section 86. The County Board of Education shall make 
all the reports required by the State Board of Education at such times, 
upon such items, and in such form and on such blanks as may be pre- 
scribed by the State Board of Education. 

2326-33. Section 87. The County Board of Education shall cause 
to be prepared and published annually, in the month of November, in 
sufl&cient quantities for distribution among the citizens of the county, 
an annual report addressed to the people of the county, covering the 
condition, current accomplishments, and needs for the improvement of 
the schools, also a statement of the business and financial transactions 
of the Board. 



146 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

2326-34. Section 88. The County Board of Education shall per- 
form such other duties as are assigned to it elsewhere in this Chapter or 
may be assigned to it from time to time by the General Assembly. 

Article 4 

County Superintendents of Schools 

2326-35. Section 89. The County Board of Education of each 
county shall appoint a County Superintendent of Schools for a term of 
two years, and he shall hold office until his successor qualifies. No per- 
son shall be eligible for appointment to the office of County Superinten- 
dent of Schools who does not hold from the State Commissioner of Educa- 
tion a certificate in administration and supervision, as provided for in 
Article 8 of this Chapter, nor shall the appointment of any person by the 
County Board of Education to the position of County Superintendent 
of Schools be valid without the written approval of the State Board of 
Education. Provided that County Superintendents of Schools holding 
office at the time when this Act shall taice effect shall continue to serve 
to the end of the term for which they were last appointed, and until their 
successors qualify, imless removed, as hereinafter provided, and shall 
also be eligible for reappointment; and provided further that all County 
Superintendents of Schools shall be paid, beginning with the school year 
1919-20, on the basis of the salaries hereinafter specified. The salary of 
a County Superintendent of Schools shall not be diminished during his 
term of office. The County Superintendent of Schools shall devote his 
entire time to public school business and shall receive such compensation 
as the County Board of Education shall direct, provided that no County 
Superintendent of Schools appointed to office under the provisions of 
this Section, or continuing in office under the provisions of this Section, 
shall be paid an annual salary of less than twenty-seven hundred dollars 
($2700) and the State of Delaware shall, as hereinafter provided pay the 
annual salary of the County Superintendent of Schools, up to and includ- 
ing an annual salary of twenty-seven hundred dollars ($2700). County 
Boards of Education may^ in their discretion, pay to a County Superin- 
tendent an annual salary in excess of twenty-seven hundred dollars 
($2700), but the State shall not share in the payment of such excess. 
The State Board of Education may remove any County Superintendent 



APPENDIX 147 

of Schools appointed under the provisions of this Section, or continuing 
in oflSce under the provisions of this Section, for immorality, misconduct 
in oflSce, for incompetency, or wilful neglect of duty, upon making known 
to him in writing the charges against him, and upon giving to him an 
opportunity of being heard, in person or by counsel, in his own defense, 
upon not less than ten days' notice. In case of vacancy due to any cause, 
the County Board of Education shall fill the vacancy and the appoint- 
ment shall be for a full term of four years, and until a successor shall 
qualify. 

2326-36. Section 90. The County Superintendent of Schools as 
the executive officer of the Coimty Board of Education, shall see that 
the laws relating to the schools, the enacted and published rules and regu- 
lations and the policies of the State Board of Education, and the rules 
and regulations and the policies of the County Board of Education are 
carried into efifect. 

2326-37. Section 91. The County Superintendent of Schools shall 
explain the true intent and meaning of the school laws, and of the rules 
and regulations of the State Board of Education, subject to the approval 
in writing of the State Board of Education; he shall decide, without ex- 
pense to the parties concerned, all controversies and disputes involving 
the rules and regulations of the County Board of Education and the 
proper administration of the public school system of the county, and his 
decision shall be final, except that an appeal may be had to the State 
Board of Education if taken in writing within thirty (30) days. The 
County Superintendent of Schools shall have authority to administer 
oaths and to examine under oath, in any part of the county, witnesses 
in any matter pertaining to the public schools of the county, and to cause 
the examination to be reduced to writing. Any person who, having 
been sworn or affirmed by him to tell the truth, and who wilfully gives 
false testimony, shall be guilty of false swearing and shall be punished 
as perjury is punished. 

2326-38. Section 92. The County Superintendent of Schools, sub- 
ject to the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regula- 
tions of the State Board of Education, shaU recommend for approval 
and adoption by the County Board of Education, the kind, grade, and 
location of schools to be established and maintained and the school 
attendance districts to be established. 



148 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

2326-39. Section 93. The County Superintendent of Schools, sub- 
ject to the provisions of this Chapter and the policies and rules and 
regulations of the State Board of Education, shall recommend for ap- 
proval and adoption by the County Board of Education educational 
policies adapted to promote the educational interests of the county, and 
rules and regulations for the conduct of the schools. 

2326-40. Section 94. The County Superintendent of Schools, as 
the executive ofl&cer of the County Board of Education, shall call and 
conduct conferences with Boards of School Trustees, supervisors, attend- , 
ance officers, principals, and teachers, and shall in every way seek to 
foster in teachers professional insight and efficiency and develop public 
interest in education. 

2326-41. Section 95. The County Superintendent of Schools, sub- 
ject to the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regula- 
tions of the State Board of Education, shall develop a building program 
adequate to meet the needs of the schools of the county, and shall sub- 
mit the same for approval and adoption by the County Board of Educa- 
tion. The County Superintendent of Schools shall recommend to the 
County Board of Education for condemnation school buildings which 
are insanitary and unfit for use; he shall recommend in writing all re- 
pairs, the purchase of playgrounds, school grounds or school sites, and 
buildings, or the sale of same, and shall prepare or cause to be prepared 
all plans and specifications for the remodeling of old buildings, and the 
construction of new buildings, subject to the provisions of Section 36 of 
this Chapter; and he shall recommend, in his discretion, to the County 
Board of Education, an architect or architects to assist in the prepara- 
tion of the plans and specifications for remodeling old buildings or the 
construction of new buildings, and shall supervise such remodeling and 
construction. He shall approve in writing all contracts of whatever 
kind entered into by the County Board of Education, and no contract 
entered into by the County Board of Education shall be valid without 
the written approval of the County Superintendent of Schools. 

2326-42. Section 96. The County Superintendent of Schools, 
subject to the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regu- 
lations of the State Board of Education, shall prepare and submit for 
approval and adoption by the County Board of Education rules and 
regulations governing the conditions on which pupils in schools limited 



APPENDIX 149 

to the first six grades of elementary instruction shall be admitted 
to elementary schools giving the two higher grades of elementary 
instruction. 

2326-43. Section 97. The County Superintendent of Schools, sub- 
ject to the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regula- 
tions of the State Board of Education, shall prepare and submit for 
approval and adoption by the County Board of Education rules and regu- 
lations governing the conditions on which children may be admitted to 
the high schools of the county, also into the high schools »f special school 
districts and have their tuition in such high schools paid by the County 
Board of Education. 

2326-44. Section 98. The County Superintendent of Schools, sub- 
ject to the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regula- 
tions of the State Board of Education, shall work out plans for the con- 
solidation of schools and for the grounds, buildings, and equipment of 
such consolidated schools, and submit the same for approval and adoption 
by the County Board of Education. 

2326-45. Section 99. The County Superintendent of Schools, sub- 
ject to the provisions of this Chapter the policies and rules and regula- 
tions of the State Board of Education, shall report annually and recom- 
mend to be closed by the County Board of Education all single one room 
schools which during three (3) preceding years have not had an average 
daily attendance of twelve (12) pupUs. 

2326-46. Section 100. The Coimty Superintendent of Schools, 
subject to the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regu- 
lations of the State Board of Education, shall prepare rules and regula- 
tions for grading and standardizing all the public schools of the county, 
and shall submit the same in writing for approval and adoption by the 
County Board of Education. He shall grade and standardize all the 
public schools of the county and shall recommend the same for approval 
by the County Board of Education. 

2326-47. Section ioi. The County Superintendent of Schools, 
subject to the provisions of this Chapter, the prescribed course of study, 
and the policies and rules and regulations of the State Board of Educa- 
tion and of the County Board of Education, shall prescribe courses of 
study for the schools of the county and submit the same for approval and 
adoption by the County Board of Education. Printed copies of these 



150 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

courses of study shall be supplied to every teacher and every interested 
citizen in the county. 

2326-48. Section 102. The County Superintendent of Schools 
shall be the representative of the State Commissioner of Education in 
all State examinations for teachers' certificates conducted within the 
county other than in special school districts, and shall perform such 
duties in connection therewith as may be required by the State Com- 
missioner of Education. He may issue, without charge, provisional 
certificates to teachers, valid in the county schools, subject to the pro- 
visions of Article 8 of this Chapter. 

2326-49. Section 103. The County Superintendent of Schools shall 
nominate, in writing, for appointment by the County Board of Educa- 
tion and fix their salaries, subject to the provisions of Article 9 of this 
Chapter, and the salary provisions of Section 112 of Article 4, and to the 
approval of the Board, all principals, all teachers and all other regular 
employees of the Board, shall assign to them their positions, transfer 
them as the needs of the schools require, recommend them for promotion, 
suspend them for cause, and recommend them for dismissal. 

2326-50. Section 104. The County Superintendent of Schools 
shall OTganiize and attend county and local institutes for teachers and 
citizens, shall organize and direct the reading circle work of the county, 
advise teachers as to their further study and professional reading, and 
assist parents and citizens to acquire a knowledge of the aims and work 
of the schools. 

2326-51. Section 105. The County Superintendent of Schools shall 
select from the textbook list prescribed by the State Board of Education 
such textbooks as are needed by the schools, also select such supplemen- 
tary readers, maps, globes, and charts, materials of instruction, stationery 
and school supplies, school furniture, educational equipment^ apparatus, 
and supplies as are necessary to the work of the schools, and recommend, 
in writing, the adoption, purchase, and distribution of the same by the 
County Board of Education. No contract for textbooks, supplementary 
readers, maps, globes and charts, materials of instruction, stationery 
and school supplies, school furniture, education equipment, apparatus, 
and supplies shall be valid without the written approval of the County 
Superintendent of Schools. 

2326-52. Section 106. The County Superintendent of Schools shall 



APPENDIX 151 

visit the schools, observe the management and instruction and give 
suggestions for the improvement of the same. He shall advise with 
principals and teachers, counsel Boards of Trustees, and shall labor in 
every way to awaken public interest and to improve educational condi- 
tions within the county. 

2326-53. Section 107. The County Superintendent of Schools, 
subject to the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and 
regulations of the State Board of Education, shall prepare forms and 
blanks on which Boards of Trustees, supervisors, attendance oflScers, 
principals, teachers, janitors, and other regular employees shall make 
such reports as shall be required by the County Board of Education, and 
shall submit the same for approval and adoption by the County Board 
of Education. 

2326-54. Section 108. The County Superintendent of Schools, 
subject to the provisions of this Chapter, the policies, rules and regula- 
tions of the State Board of Education, shall prepare the armual school 
budget provided for in Section 83 of this Chapter, and shall submit the 
same for approval and adoption by the County Board of Education. He 
shall in every way seek to secure adequate funds for the support and 
development of the schools of the county. 

2326-55. Section 109. The County Superintendent of Schools shall 
direct the taking in the county of the biennial school census provided for 
in Section 20 of this Chapter. 

2326-56. Section no. The County Superintendent of Schools 
shall, subject to the rules and regulations of the State Board of Educa- 
tion, enforce the provisions of Article 10 of this Chapter, relating to 
school attendance. 

2326-57. Section rrr. The County Superintendent of Schools shall 
prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit to the County Board of 
Education for adoption, all reports required of the County Board by the 
State Board of Education and the State Commissioner of Education, and 
he shall prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval to 
the County Board of Education, the annual report addressed to the 
people of the County, provided for in Section 87 of this Chapter. 

2326-58. Section 112. The Coimty Superintendent of Schools, act- 
ing under the rules and regulations of the County Board of Education, 
shall be responsible for the administration of the office of the County 



IS2 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

Superintendent of Schools. He shall nominate, for appointment by the 
County Board of Education, and^ the salaries subject to the approval 
of the Board, all the professional, clerical, statistical and stenographic 
assistants of the office; he shall recormnend their removal for immorality, 
misconduct in office, incompetency, or wilful neglect of duty, and he 
shall see that aU regular appointees of the County Board of Education 
devote their entire time to their duties. The office of the County Super- 
intendent of Schools shall, beginning with the school year 1919-20, be 
provided at least as follows with professional, clerical, statistical and 
stenographic assistants: 

(i) In each county there shall at least be appointed elementary 
school supervisors as follows: In Kent County two (2); in New Castle 
County two (2), and in Sussex County three (3). Elementary school 
supervisors shall receive such compensation as the County Board of 
Education shall direct, provided that no person shall be eligible for ap- 
pointtnent as elementary school supervisor who does not hold from the 
State Commissioner of Education a certificate in elementary school su- 
pervision, as provided for in Article 8 of this Chapter; nor shall the ap- 
pointment of any person as elementary school supervisor by the County 
Board of Education be valid without the written approval of the State 
Commissioner of Education. And provided further that no elementary 
school supervisor appointed under the provisions of this Section shall be 
paid an annual salary of less than sixteen hundred dollars ($1600), and 
the State of Delaware shall, as hereinafter provided, pay the annual salary 
of two (2) elementary school supervisors in Kent County, of two (2) in 
New Castle County, and of three (3) in Sussex County, up to and includ- 
ing an annual salary for each of sixteen hundred dollars ($1600). County 
Boards of Education may employ, on the recommendation of the County 
Superintendent of Schools, a greater number of elementary school super- 
visors than above designated and pay each an annual salary in excess 
of sixteen hundred dollars ($1600), but the State shall not share in the 
payment of the salary of such additional elementary school supervisors 
or in the payment of said excess in annual salary. 

(2) There shall be appointed in each county at least one attendance 
officer, whose duty it shall be to enforce regular school attendance. 
Attendance officers shall receive such compensation as the County Board 
of Education shall direct, provided that the appointment of no person 



APPENDIX 153 

as an attendance officer shall be valid without the written approval of 
the State Commissioner of Education. And provided further that no 
attendance officer appointed under the provision of this Section shall 
be paid an annual salary of less than ten hundred dollars ($1,000) and 
the State of Delaware shall pay, as hereinafter provided, the annual 
salary of one attendance officer up to and including an annual salary of 
ten hundred dollars ($1,000). County Boards of Education may employ 
on the recommendation of the County Superintendent of Schools as 
many additional attendance officers as in their judgment are necessary, 
and may pay annual salaries to attendance officers in excess of ten him- 
dred dollars ($1,000), but the State shall not share in the payment of 
their salaries or in the payment of said excess annual salary. 

(3) There shall be employed in each county at least one statistical 
and stenographic clerk. 

(4) And such other clerical, statistical and stenographic assistants, 
and such other professional assistants (assistant superintendents, super- 
visors, attendance officers, medical inspectors, and school nurses) as the 
County Board of Education shall authorize on the recommendation of 
the County Superintendent of Schools; provided that no professional 
assistant shall be appointed who does not hold the appropriate certificate 
issued by the State Board of Education, and the appointment of no pro- 
fessional assistant shall be valid without the written approval of the State 
Board of Education. 

2326-59. Section 113. The County Board of Education shall pro- 
vide the County Superintendent of Schools and his professional and cleri- 
cal assistants, with ample, convenient, and comfortable office quarters, 
and with adequate clerical supplies and equipment, and the County 
Superintendent of Schools and his professional assistants shall be pro- 
vided with such means of transportation as are necessary for the con- 
venient, effective, and efficient performance of their official duties. 
They shall be reimbursed for all actual and necessary traveling expenses 
and disbursements incurred or made by them in the performance of their 
official duties, and no part of the traveling expenses of the County Super- 
intendent of Schools or his professional assistants incurred in the per- 
formance of their official duties, shall be included in, or counted as a. 
part of their annual salary. 

2326-60. Section 114. The County Superintendent of Schools shall 



154 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

perform such other duties as are assigned to him elsewhere in this Chapter 
or may be assigned to him from time to time by the County Board of 
Education and the General Assembly. 

Articxe s 
Boards of Education 

2326-61. Section 115. The general administration and supervision 
of the free public schools and educational interest of each special school 
district shall be vested in a Board of Education. Such Board of Educa- 
tion shall be composed of three members. They shaU be elected from 
the residents of the given special school district by the male residents 
qualified as hereinafter provided, and by women who have paid a tax 
at any time during the preceding twelve months on real or personal 
property, at a special election for terms of three years beginning with the 
first day of July next succeeding their election, and shall hold office until 
their respective successors qualify. Residents of the county, outside of 
the special school districts, shall not vote for members of the Boards 
of Education in special school districts. The school election in each 
special school district shall be held on the third Saturday of June in each 
year, between the hours of two and four o'clock in the afternoon at the 
principal schoolhouse in the respective school districts, and shall be 
conducted by members of the Board of Education at each special school 
district. The President of the Board of Education shall preside at the 
election, and the other two members of the Board shall be the Judges of 
the election; provided that if, for any reason, one or more of the members 
of the Board of Education should be unable to serve as election officers, 
the said Board of Education shall designate another person, or persons, 
to act in such capacity; and provided, further, that should the Board of 
Education of any special school district fail or neglect to provide election 
officers at any such election, the voters present shall designate and 
appoint election officers to conduct the election in such special school 
district. The school election in special school districts shall be by ballot, 
upon which shall be written or printed the names of the candidates for 
whom the voter desires to vote. Any male resident of the said special 
school district, who would be entitled, at the time of the holding of the 
said school election, to register and vote in any election district, of which 



APPENDIX 155^ 

said special district is a part, at a general election, if such general election 
were to be held at the time of such school election, shall be deemed to be a 
qualified voter at the school election in the special school district where 
he then resides. Women residents of the special school district shall be 
entitled to vote at a school election therein, upon presentation of a tax 
receipt for taxes assessed against them, within the preceding twelve 
months. If any person, not duly qualified to vote, shall offer to vote at 
a special district school election, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and 
shall be punishable by a fine, or imprisonment, or both, in the discretion 
of the Court. The election officers, conducting the election in a special 
district school election, shall publicly count the votes cast at any such 
election and shall certify the results of such election under their hands 
and seals to the State Board of Education. When this act goes into 
effect the terms of ofl&ce of the persons who are at that time members 
of the Board of Education of the towns and cities hereinafter created 
and designated as special school districts shall automatically expire; but 
such members shall be qualified for appointment and election under the 
provisions of this Section, unless otherwise disqualified by the provisions 
of this Section. When this Act goes into effect, the Governor shall as 
soon as possible thereafter appoint from the members of the Boards of 
Education of the respective special school districts at the time this Act 
goes into effect, three members to the Board of Education of the respec- 
tive special school districts who shall take oflBce inunediately and serve 
under the provisions of this chapter until the fiirst day of July 1920 and 
imtil their respective successors qualify. At the school election of 1920, 
three members shall b^ elected to the Board of Education of each special 
school district; one to serve for one year, or until the first day of July 
1921; one to serve for two years, or until the first day of July 1922, and 
one to serve for three years, or until the first day of July 1923, and until 
their respective successors qualify. Provided that in the first election, 
under the provisions of this section, the candidate receiving the highest 
nimiber of votes in each special school district shall be declared elected 
for three years; the candidate receiving the next highest nimiber of votes 
shall be declared elected for two years, and the candidate receiving the 
next highest number of votes shall be declared elected for one year. 
Thereafter, one member shall be elected each year for the full term of 
thzee years. The members of the Board of Education of special school 



IS6 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

districts shall be chosen solely because of their character and fitness; but 
no person shall be appointed or elected to this Board under the provisions 
of this Section who is in any way subject to the authority of this Board. 
Vacancies in this Board for any cause shall be filled by the State Board 
of Education, such appointees serving until the next school election and 
until their respective successors qualify. At the next school election 
succeeding such appointment or appointments, the vacancy or vacancies 
shall be filled for the remainder of the respective unexpired term or terms. 
Any member of a Board of Education of a special school district shall be 
eligible for reelection, unless otherwise disqualified by the provisions of 
this Section. Whenever a new special school district shall be created 
and erected under the provisions of Section i8 hereof, the State Board of 
Education shall at once appoint three suitable persons, possessing tlie 
necessary qualifications, for members of a Board of Education, to be 
members of the Board of Education of such special school district who 
shall take office immediately and serve under the provisions of this 
Chapter until the first day of July following the next school election there- 
after, and until their respective successors qualify. At the next school 
election after such appointment, there shall be elected to the Board of 
Education of such special school district three members; one to serve 
for one year, one to serve for two years and one to serve for three years 
from the first day of July following such election, and until their respec- 
tive successors qualify. Provided, that at such election the candidate 
receiving the highest number of votes shall be declared elected for three 
years, the candidate receiving the next highest number of votes shall be 
declared elected for two years, and the candidate receiving the next 
highest number of votes shall be declared elected for one year. There- 
after one member shall be elected at each school election for the full term 
of three years. 

2326-62. Section 116. The office of the Board of Education shall 
be in the principal school building of the respective special school district 
unless otherwise adequately provided for. The Board of Education 
shall hold its annual meeting each year at its office on the first day of 
July. At this meeting the Board shall each year elect one of its members 
to serve as President and one to serve as Vice-President. Other regular 
meetings shall be held on the second Friday of September, Decemfcer and 
March, and such special meetings may be held as the duties and the 



APPENDIX IS7 

business of the Board may require. The members of the Board of Edu- 
cation shall receive no compensation for their services. The rules gen- 
erally adopted by deliberative bodies for their government shall be 
observed by Boards of Education. No motion or resolution shall be de- 
clared adopted without the concurrence of a majority of the whole Board. 

2326-63. Section 117. The Board of Education of each special 
school district shall appoint, subject to the provisions of Section 137 of 
this Chapter, as its executive officer, a Superintendent of Schools, who 
shall also be Secretary of the given Board of Education. As Secretary 
he shall conduct all correspondence of the Board, keep and preserve all 
of its records, receive all reports required by the Board, and see that such 
reports are in proper form, complete and accurate. He shall attend all 
meetings of the Board and of its committees except when his own tenure, 
his salary, or the administration of his office are under discussion, and 
shaU have the right to advise on any question under consideration, but 
shall have no vote. In case the office of Superintendent of Schools is 
temporarily vacant, or when the Superintendent of Schools is absent by 
reason of the nature of the business in hand or otherwise, the Board shall 
appoint one of its members to act for the time being as Secretary. 

23 26-64. Section 118. The County Treasurer shall be the Treasurer 
of each respective special school district. He shall receive and hold all 
moneys which the respective Board of Education is entitled to by law 
and which may come into its possession, and shall deposit ail such 
moneys in the financial institution which is the legal depository of State 
moneys in the custody of the State Treasurer. 

He shall pay out all such moneys on the written order of the President 
of the respective Board of Education and of its Secretary, and shall keep 
such records and accounts of its funds as shall be required by the State 
Board of Education. 

2326-65. Section 119. The Board of Education of each special 
school district is hereby vested with all the powers necessary or proper 
for the administration and management of the free public schools within 
such special school district, subject to the limitations and restrictions 
provided in this Act. 

2326-66. Section 120. AU property, estate, effects, money, funds, 
claims and state donations heretofore vested by law in the public school 
authorities of any special school district, for the benefit of Ite free 



iS8 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

public schools of such district, are hereby placed under and subject tC 
the control and management of the Board of Education of such special 
school district. Real and personal estate granted, conveyed, devised, 
or bequeathed for the use of any special school district, shall be held in 
trust by the Board of Education for the benefit of the free public schools 
of the respective special school district, and such grants, bequests and 
moneys invested in trust shall be exempt from all State, county and local 
taxes. 

2326-67. Section 121. The following cities, towns, and school dis- 
tricts which shall accept the provisions of this Act as hereinafter in this 
Section provided, are hereby created and designated special school dis- 
tricts, subject to the provisions of this Article and Chapter: In New 
Castle County: Wilmington, comprising the present school districts, 
which may operate its schools according to the provisions of special 
school laws, except in so far as these special school laws are in conflict 
with the provisions of Articles i and 2; of Sections 121, 122, 123, 124, 
126, 127, 128, 129, 130, 133, 134, and 13s of Article 5; of Sections 137, 
138, 139, 140, 141, 142, 143, 144, 145, 146, 147, 148, 149, iSo» 151. 153, 
154, IS5) 156, and 156-A of Article 6; and of Articles 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 
14 of this Chapter, all of which shall apply to Wilmington, School 
Districts 23 and 75 (Alexis I. duPont School), Newark, comprising the 
present school districts, and New Castle, comprising the present school 
districts; in Kent County: consolidated District No. i (the Caesar Rod- 
ney School), Dover, comprising the present school districts, Harrington, 
comprising the present school districts, Milford, comprising the present 
school districts, and Smyrna, comprising the present school district; 
in Sussex County: Georgetown, comprising the present school districts, 
Laurel, comprising the present school districts, Lewes, comprising the 
present school districts, and Seaford, comprising the present school dis- 
tricts. The Board of Education of each of the school districts, in this 
section above specified, is hereby authorized and empowered in the name 
of and for such district to accept the provisions of this Act by a resolu- 
tion of a majority of the members of such Board adopted prior to the 
thirtieth day of June 1919, and (a) written copy of such resolution cer- 
tified by the Secretary of such Board, filed with the Secretary of the 
State Board of Education, together with a duplicate copy filed with the 
trustee of the school fund, on or before the said thirtieth day of June 1919, 



APPENDIX 159 

shall be deemed and taken to be conclusive evidence of the acceptance 
by the said district of the provisions of this Act; provided that the State 
Board of Education may, for good cause shown, extend the time for the 
adoption of such resolution and for the filing of such copies, in the dis- 
cretion of the said State Board. 

The said State Board of Education shall have the p>ower to create other 
special school districts, subject to the provisions of this Article and 
Chapter. 

2326-68. Section 122. The special school districts herein created 
and designated, and special school districts hereafter created by the State 
Board of Education to continue to exercise the privilege of a special 
school district and of operating its schools according to the pro- 
visions of this Article, shall meet and continue to fulfill the following 
conditions: 

(i) Ample grounds, buildings and equipment shall be provided con- 
forming to the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education. 

{2) An elementary school including grades one to eight inclusive, 
shall be maintained, also a standard, first class high school, as defined in 
Article 12 of this Chapter and the rules and regulations of the State Board 
of Education. The Board of Education may establish kindei;gartens and 
playgrounds, and it may establish, on the recommendation of the Superin- 
tendent of Schools and subject to the approval of the State Commissioner 
of Education, such other types of schools as in its Judgment will promote 
the educational interest of the district. The school year in all regular day 
elementary schools and all regular day high schools shall be ten calendar 
months and all such schools shall be in session during each school year not 
less than one hundred and eighty days, beginning on the first Tuesday 
after the first Monday in September. Into the high school or high 
schools of each special school district shall be admitted children from the 
county school systems, on the conditions and at the tuition rates pre- 
scribed by the State Board of Education. 

(3) Free textbooks, school supplies, and instructional materials shall 
be provided all pupils attending the kindergarten, day elementary schools, 
and day high schools, free textbooks, school supplies, and instructional 
materials may be provided pupils in such other schools as are established 
and maintained. 

(4) Each special school district shall employ a Superintendent of 



i6o NEW SCHOOL CODE 

Schools who shall hold the certificate prescribed for Superintendent of 
Schools in Article 8 of this Chapter. The Superintendent of Schools 
shall not be paid an annual salary less than the minimum aimual salary 
for Superintendents of Schools prescribed in Article 9 of this Chapter, 
but any Board of Education may pay a Superintendent of Schools more 
than the minimum salary prescribed in Article 9 of this Chapter. The 
Superintendent of Schools shaU have at least one-half of his entire time 
free for supervision. 

(5) The Boards of Education may employ a high school principal or 
principals, elementary school principal, or principals, elementary school 
supervisors, high school supervisors, and attendance officers, subject to 
the conditions of Article 8 and Article 9 of the salary provisions of Section 
1X2 of Article 4 of this Chapter. Provided that if the Board of Education 
of a special school district does not employ an attendance officer or officers, 
the enforcement of school attendance in the respective special school 
district shall fall to the County Superintendent of Schools of the County 
in which the respective special school district is located, and the Super- 
intendent of Schools of the respective special school district shall make 
to the County Superintendent of Schools such reports on the school 
population, school enrollment, and school attendance of the respective 
special school district as may be required by the State Board of Educa- 
tion. Provided that Wilmington shall employ sufficient attendance 
officers to enforce school attendance. Boards of Education of special 
school districts may also employ medical inspectors and school nurses 
subject to the provisions of Article 8 of this Chapter. 

(6) In the regular day high schools of the special school districts, no 
teacher shall hereafter be employed unless such teacher holds a high 
school teacher's certificate as provided for in Article 8 of this Chapter, 
and such high school teachers shall not be paid less than the minimum 
annual salaries prescribed for teachers holding high school teachers' 
certificates in Article g of this Chapter, but any Board of Education on 
recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools may pay such high 
school teachers more than the minimum annual salaries prescribed for 
teachers holding high school teachers' certificates in Article 9 of this 
Chapter. 

(7) In regular day elementary schools of special school districts, no 
teacher shall hereafter be employed unless such teacher holds a first grade 



APPENDIX i6i 

elementary school teacher's certificate as prescribed in Article 8 of this 
Chapter, and such elementary teachers shall not be paid less than the 
minimum annual salaries prescribed for teachers holding first grade ele- 
mentary school teachers' certificates in Article 9 of this Chapter, but any 
Board of Education on recommendation of the Superintendent of 
Schools may pay such elementary school teachers more than the min- 
imum salaries prescribed for teachers holding first grade elementary 
school teachers' certificates in Article 9 of this Chapter. 

(8) Boards of Education of special school districts may on the recom- 
mendation of their respective Superintendents of Schools employ such 
other professional assistance and such clerical, accoimting, and statistical 
assistance as in their judgment is necessary to the work of the schools 
under their respective jurisdiction. 

(9) Special school districts shall meet and shall continue to fulfill 
such other conditions as may hereafter be prescribed by the State Board 
of Education. 

2326-69. Section 123. The Board of Education shall exercise 
through its executive ofl&cer, the Superintendent of Schools, and his pro- 
fessional assistants, control and supervision over the public schools of the 
district. The Board shall consult and advise, through its executive 
officer and his professional assistants, principals, teachers, and interested 
citizens, and shall seek in every way to promote the interests of the schools 
under its jurisdiction. 

2326-70. Section 124. The Board of Education shall determine, 
on the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools and subject to 
the provisions of this Chapter, the rules and regulations, and the policies 
of the State Board of Education, the educational policies of the district 
and shall prescribe rules and regulations for the conduct and the man- 
agement of the schools, and shall maintain separate schools for white 
and for colored children. 

2326-71. Section 125. The Board of Education is authorized, em- 
powered, directed, and required to provide ample, appropriate, and 
suitable grounds, buildings, and equipment for all the needed schools of 
the district, conforming to the rules and regulations of the State Board of 
Education for^the hygienic, sanitary, and protective construction of school 
buildings. 

The Board of Education is authorized and empowered, on the recom- 



i62 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

mendation of the Superintendent of Schools and approval of the State 
Commissioner of Education, to purchase playgrounds, school groimds, 
or school sites, and buildings, and to sell the same when no longer needed 
for educational purposes; to rent, repair, improve, and construct school 
buildings, or approve contracts for so doing when the plans conform to 
the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education. The Board 
of Education shall employ an architect or architects on the recommenda- 
tion of the Superintendent of Schools to assist in the preparation of plans 
and specifications for remodeling old buildings and for constructing new 
buildings, but the architect or architects employed shall be approved by 
the State Commissioner of Education. 

The Board of Education may receive donation of playgrounds, school 
grounds or school sites, or of houses, already built, suitably located and 
adapted to school purposes, but in no case shall any site be built upon or 
any house be occupied until a good and sufficient title has been obtained 
for the same in the corporate name of the Board. 

When land shall be required for the site of a schoolhouse or for enlarg- 
ing a schoolhouse lot, or for playgrounds or other school purposes, and the 
Board of Education shall for any cause be unable to contract with the 
owner or owners thereof upon what they deem to be a fair valuation 
thereof, the Board of Education may institute condemnation proceed- 
ings, but no lot so taken or enlarged shall exceed in the whole ten (lo) 
acres including the land occupied by the school building. 

Whenever it shall be necessary to institute condemnation proceedings to 
acquire any land for school purposes, as provided in this Section, the 
Board of Education may apply to the Associate Judge of the State of 
Delaware, resident in the County where any such land is located for the 
condemnation thereof, and the said resident Judge shall thereupon ap- 
point five judicious and impartial freeholders residing in the county out- 
side of such special school district, to view the premises and assess the 
damages which the owner or owners will sustain by reason of the taking 
of the said lands for the purposes aforesaid. The freeholders shall be 
sworn or affirmed faithfully and impartially to perform the duties as- 
signed them. They shall give ten days' notice in writing to the owner or 
owners of the premises proposed to be condemned if within the State, and 
to the said Board of Education of the time of their meeting to view the 
premises and assess damages. If the owner or owners reside outside of 



APPENDIX 163 

the State, or if under any legal disability, and having no legal representa- 
tive in the State, publication of such notice shall be made in some news- 
paper in the county in which proceedings were instituted, at least, ten 
days prior to the date fixed for said meeting, and such publication shall be 
sufficient notice thereof. The said freeholders shall ascertain and assess 
the damages to the owner or owners, taking into consideration all cir- 
cumstances of convenience or injury, but shall aUow, at least, the cash 
value of the land taken, and shall certify their award to the owner or 
owners, and, also, to the Board of Education, and shall return a record of 
their proceedings with their finding and award to the Prothonotary of 
the County in which the proceedings were instituted. If the said free- 
holders should be guilty of misconduct in their proceedings, or if they 
should make a grossly improper award, the said Judge shall on applica- 
tion set aside their award and shall appoint other freeholders in their 
place, who shall proceed anew in the manner hereinbefore provided, and 
in like manner he may set aside their finding or award, or the finding or 
award of freeholders subsequently appointed for the purposes aforesaid, 
until a fair and equitable award has been made and accepted. The said 
Judge may substitute other freeholders in the place of any freeholder who 
for any reason may be unable to serve. When the amount of damages 
has been ascertained, the said Board of Education may pay, or tender 
the amount thereof, within two months, to the person or persons entitled 
thereto, or if, for any reason, payment can not be made to the owner or 
owners, the amount of such damages may be deposited to the credit of 
the persons entitled thereto in the Farmers Bank of the State of Delaware 
at the County Seat of the County in which said proceedings were in- 
stituted, and thereupon the said lands may be taken and occupied for the 
use and purpose for which said lands were condemned. The said free- 
holders shall be allowed three dollars ($3) per day for their services 
which sum, together with other expenses of the said condemnation pro- 
ceedings, shall be paid by the Board of Education of the respective special 
school district. 

If for any reason the current income of the Board of Education is 
inadequate to provide ample, appropriate, and suitable grounds, build- 
ings and equipment for all the needed schools of the district the Board 
of Education is authorized, and empowered, on the recommendation 
of the Superintendent of Schools, to issue bonds on the credit of the 



i64 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

district in amount sufficient to provide ample, appropriate, and suitable 
grounds, buildings, and equipment for all the needed schools of the 
district 

Provided that the Board of Education shall not be authorized to issue 
bonds for the purpose of this section in a greater amount in the aggregate 
than five per cent (s%) of the assessed value of the real estate of 
such special school district. Provided, further, that the funds derived 
from such bond issue shall be used only to provide or purchase new 
grounds, new buildings, and new permanent equipment. Such bonds 
shall not be issued or sold at less than their face value, and shall be issued 
in series, with no bond of any given series running more than twenty-five 
(25) years. 

The bonds provided for in this section shall be in such denomination 
or denominations, in such form, and shall bear such rate of interest, not 
exceeding six per cent (6 %) per annum, as shall be determined by 
the Board of Education of the respective special school district. The 
said bonds shaU be signed by the President and other members of the said 
Board of Education. The said Board of Education shall have the power 
to adopt and use a seal for the execution of the said bonds. The faith and 
credit of the special school district shall be deemed to be pledged for the 
payment of the said bonds. The said bonds shall be denominated as of 
the special school district in which they are issued, shall be of the series 
of the year in which they are issued, and the principal and interest shall 
be made payable at the branch of the Farmers Bank in the Coimty in 
which said bonds are issued. The said bonds shall be exempt from all 
State, County, or Municipal taxes. 

Provided, further, that the Board of Education shall, in its current 
school budget, hereinafter provided for, under the item "Debt Service" 
make provisions for the payment of the current interest on each and 
every series of bond issues and also for the payment and liquidation each 
year of not less than one twenty-fifth (1-25) of each and every series of 
bonds issued. 

2326-72. Section 126. The Board of Education, subject to the pro- 
visions of this Chapter, and the policies, rules, and regulations of the 
State Board of Education, shall, on the written recommendation of the 
Superintendent of Schools, grade and standardize all the schools under its 
jurisdiction. 



APPENDIX i6s< 

2326-73. Section 127. The Board of Education, subject to the 
provisions of this Chapter, the rules and regulations, prescribed courses 
of study, and the policies of the State Board of Education, shall prescribe, 
on the written recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools, courses 
of study for the schools under its jurisdiction, and a printed copy of these 
courses of study shall be supplied to every teacher and to every inter- 
ested citizen of the district. 

2326-74. Section i 28. The Board of Education shall, on the written 
recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools, appoint all principals, 
teachers, all supervisors, attendance ofl&cers, janitors, and all other regu- 
lar employees, and fix their salaries, subject to the provisions of Article 
9 of this Chapter and of the salary provisions of Section 112 of Article 4. 
The Board of Education may suspend or dismiss without appeal, any 
principal, or teacher, or supervisor, or attendance officer, or other regular 
employee so appointed on the written recommendation of the Superin- 
tendent of Schools, for immorality, misconduct in office, incompetency, 
or wilful neglect of duty. Provided that in the case of a principal, or 
teacher, or supervisor, or attendance officer, the charges be stated in 
writing, and that the principal, or teacher, or supervisor, or attendance 
officer be given an opportunity to be heard by the Board upon not less 
than ten (10) days' notice; provided further that in all cases when the 
Board is not unanimous in its decision to suspend or dismiss a principal, 
or teacher, or supervisor, or^ attendance officer, the right of appeal 
shall lie to the State Board of Education. The contracts of every 
principal, teacher, supervisor, attendance officer, and other regular 
employees shall be for the school year, beginning July ist and ending 
June 30th, except when they are employed after the beginning of the 
school year, when the contract shall be for the remainder of the school 
year. 

2326-75. Section 129. The Board of Education shaU select and 
adopt, on the written recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools, 
from the textbook list prescribed by the State Board of Education, pur- 
chase, and distribute free of charge to all day elementary and all day high 
school pupils, such textbooks as are necessary to carry out the adopted 
courses of study, provided that the textbooks so selected and adopted 
shall not be changed more often than once in three (3) years. The 
Board of Education shall also select and purchase on the written recom- 



i66 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

mendation of the Superintendent of Schools, such supplementary readers, 
maps, globes, and charts, materials oi instruction, stationery and school 
supplies, school furniture, educational equipment, apparatus, and sup- 
plies as are necessary to the work of the schools, and no charge shall be 
made to either day elementary or day high school pupils for the use of 
such supplies or equipment. 

2326-76 . Section 130. The Board of Education, subject to the pro- 
visions of this Chapter and the rules and regulations of the State Board 
of Education, shall prescribe, on the recommendation of the Superin- 
tendent of Schools, forms and blanks on which principals, teachers, 
supervisors, attendance officers, janitors, and other regular employees 
shall make such reports as may be requested from them on the 
recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools, by the Board of 
Education. 

2326-77. Section 131. The Board of Education is authorized, em- 
powered, directed, and required to provide ample funds for the mainten- 
ance and operation of uniform, equal, and efficient schools throughout 
the district. Each year beginning with 1920, prior to the usual date on 
which the Levy Court of the respective county levy other county taxes, 
the Board of Education shall prepare, subject to the rules and regulations 
of the State Board of Education on the recommendation of the Superin- 
tendent of Schools, an itemized and detailed annual school budget. This 
annual school budget shall show the amounts needed during the succeed- 
ing school year for (i) debt service as provided for in Section 125 of this 
Chapter, (2) permanent improvements and repairs, and (3) current 
maintenance and operation, including the transportation of school chil- 
dren. The annual school budget shall also show the estimated amount 
that will be received from the State for (i) aiding elementary schools, 
which amount shall be used for pajdng elementary teachers' salaries and 
purchasing free textbooks, materials of instructions, and school supplies; 
(2) aiding high schools which amount shall be used for paying high school 
teachers' salaries and purchasing free textbooks, materials of instruction 
and school supplies; (3) the estimated amount of high school aid that will 
be received by reason of the provisions of the Smith-Hughes Vocational 
Education Act; (4) the estimated income of the Board other than from 
district taxation; and (5) the estimated amount that will need to be 
raised by district taxation. Taxes for special school district purposes 



APPENDIX 167 

shall be of two kinds: (i) a capitation tax, the amount of which shall be 
fixed annually by the Board of Education and stated in its annual school 
budget, but which shall not be less than three dollars ($3.00) nor more 
than six dollars ($6.00) annually, and shall be levied on the person of all 
male residents of the respective special school district twenty-one (21) 
years of age or over; (2) a property tax, to be levied on the assessed 
value, as determined and fixed for other county taxation purposes, of the 
personal and real property in the respective special school district, pro- 
vided that said tax so levied shall not exceed one and one-half per cent 
of the assessed value of the property in said special district. This annual 
school budget shall be submitted in writing, not less than ten (10) days 
before the usual date for levying other county taxes, to the Levy Court 
of the respective county; at the same time a written copy of this annual 
school budget shall be submitted to the State Commissioner of Education. 
The Levy Court of the respective county is authorized, empowered, 
directed and required to levy and to collect at the time of collections and 
through the collector or collectors of other coimty taxes, the capitation 
tax as fixed and specified in the annual school budget of the respective 
Board of Education, and to levy and collect such tax at the time of collec- 
tion, and through the collector or collectors of county taxes on the as- 
sessed value, as determined and fixed for other county taxation purposes, 
of all personal and real property in and of the respective special school 
district as shall produce the remainder and the total amount required by 
the respective Board of Education to be raised by district taxation. All 
the powers and remedies, now or hereafter vested by law in the collector 
or collectors of taxes for county purposes, is hereby vested in the said 
collector or collectors in the collection of the special school district tax, 
levied under the provisions of this Section. The district school taxes so 
levied and collected, after deducting the fees for collection, if any, shaU 
be turned over by the collector or collectors immediately on collection 
to the Treasurer of the Board of Education of the respective special school 
district, on the tax bills presented to the taxpayers of the respective 
special school districts, the school tax shall appear as a separate item 
entitled "District School Tax," and shall show as sub-items and sepa- 
rately the arriount of capitation tax and the amount of personal and real 
property tax. Provided that for the school year 1919-20 the Board of 
Education shall prepare the annual school budget for the school year 



i68 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

1919-20 and present it as soon as possible after July i, 1919, to the Levy 
Court of the respective county, and that the amounts required to be 
raised by district taxation shall be levied and collected as provided for 
beginning with 1920 in this Section by the Levy Court at the time local 
school taxes are now levied and collected under the existing school laws. 
All taxes received by the Board of Education shall be expended by them 
in accordance with the items of its annual school budget. 

2326-78. Section 132. If for any reason the current funds on hand 
are not sufficient to meet the current expenses of the Board, the Board 
of Education, on the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools, 
may borrow money on the credit of the district to meet current expenses, 
provided that, all such current loans shall be paid within the school year 
in which such current loans are made and shall be paid from the funds 
derived from the taxes levied and collected for the current expenses of the 
schools within the given school year and provided further that the amount 
so borrowed shall at no time exceed ten per cent. (10 %) of the sum 
estimated for current expenses as shown by the school budget for that 
year. 

2326-79. Section 133. The auditor of accounts shall each year, 
as soon as possible after July ist, audit the business and financial trans- 
actions of the Board of Education of each special school district, and the 
'■ecords and accounts of its respective Treasurer, and the Board of Edu- 
cation of the respective special school district shall make public the result 
of this audit. 

2326-80. Section 134. The Board of Education shall make all re- 
ports required by the State Board of Education, at such time, upon such 
items, and in such form and on such blanks as may be prescribed by the 
State Board of Education. 

2326-81. Section 135. The Board of Education shall cause to be 
prepared and published annually in the month of November, in sufficient 
quantities for distribution among the citizens of the district, an annual 
report addressed to the people of the district, covering the condition, 
current accomplishments, and needs for the improvement of the Schools, 
also a statement of the business and financial transactions of the Board. 

2326-82. Section 136. The Board of Education shall perform such 
other duties as are assigned to it elsewhere in this Chapter, or may be 
assigned to it from time to time by the General Assembly. 



APPENDIX i6^ 

Article 6 
Superintendent of Schools 

2326-83. Section 137. The Board of Education of each special 
school district shall appoint a Superintendent of Schools for a term of 
three years, and he shall hold office until his successor qualifies. No per- 
son shall be eligible for appointment to the ofl&ce of Superintendent of 
Schools who does not hold from the State Board of Education a Superin- 
tendent of Schools' certificate as provided for in Article 8 of this Chapter, 
nor shall the appointment of any person by a Board of Education to the 
position of Superintendent of Schools be valid without the written ap- 
proval of the State Commissioner of Education. Provided that the 
Superintendents of Schools, in the special school districts created by this 
Act, holding ofl&ce at the time when this Act shall take effect, shall con-^ 
tinue to serve to the end of the term for which they were last appointed, 
and until their successors qualify, unless removed as hereinafter provided, 
and shall also be eligible for reappointment; and provided further that all 
Superintendents of Schools shall be paid, beginning with the school year 
1919-1920, on the basis of the salaries hereinafter specified. The Su- 
perintendent of Schools shall devote his entire time to public school 
business and shall receive such compensation as the Board of Education 
shall direct, provided that no Superintendent of Schools appointed to 
office under the provisions of this Section or continuing in office under the 
provisions of this Section shall be paid an aimual salary less than the 
annual salary provided for in Article 9 of this Chapter. Boards of Edu- 
cation may, in their discretion, pay to a Superintendent of Schools an 
annual salary in excess of the annual salary specified in Article 9 of this 
Chapter. The State Board of Education may remove any Superinten- 
dent of Schools appointed under the provisions of this Section, or con- 
tinuing in office under the provisions of this Section, for immorality, mis- 
conduct in office, incompetency, or wilful neglect of duty, upon making 
known to him in writing the charges against him and upon giving to him 
an opportunity of being heard, in person or by counsel, in his own defense 
upon not less than ten (10) days' notice. In case of vacancy due to any 
cause, the Board of Education shall fill the vacancy, and the appointment 
shall be for a full term of three (3) years and until a successor shall qualify. 



I70 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

2326-84. Section 138. The Superintendent of Schools, as the 
executive ofl&cer of the Board of Education, shall see that the laws relating 
to the schools, the enacted and published rules and regulations and the 
policies of the State Board of Education, and the rules and regulations 
and policies of the Board of Education of the particular special school 
district are carried into effect. 

2326-85. Section 139. The Superintendent of Schools shall explain 
the true intent and meaning of the school laws and of the rules and regula- 
tions of the State Board of Education, subject to the approval in writing 
of the State Board of Education; he shall decide, without expense to the 
parties concerned, all controversies and disputes involving the rules and 
regulations of the Board of Education of the respective special school 
district and the proper administration of the public schools of the district, 
and his decision shall be final except that an appeal may be had to the 
State Board of Education if taken in writing within thirty (30) days. 
The Superintendent of Schools shall have authority to administer oaths, 
and to examine under oath in any part of the respective special school 
district, witnesses in any matter pertaining to the public schools of the 
district, and to cause the examination to be reduced to writing. Any 
person who, having been sworn or afl&rmed by him to tell the truth, wil- 
fully gives false testimony, shall be guilty of false swearing and shall be 
punished accordingly. 

2326-86. Section 140. The Superintendent of Schools, subject to 
the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regulations of 
the State Board of Education, shall recommend for approval and adop- 
tion by the Board of Education the kind, grade, and location of the 
schools to be established and maintained in the respective special school 
district. 

2326-87. Section 141. The Superintendent of Schools, subject to 
the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regulations of 
the State Board of Education, shall recommend for approval and adop- 
tion by the Board of Education of the respective special school district 
policies adapted to promoting the educational interest of the district and 
rules and regulations for the conduct of the schools of the district. 

2326-88. Section 142. The Superintendent of Schools, as the 
executive officer of the Board of Education, shall call and conduct con- 
ferences with the supervisors, attendance officers, principals, and teachers 



APPENDIX 171 

of the respective special school district, and shall in every way seek to 
foster in teachers professional insight and efficiency and develop public 
interest in education. 

2326-89. Section 143. The Superintendent of Schools, subject to 
the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regulations of 
the State Board of Education, shall develop a building program adequate 
to meet the needs of the schools of the respective school district, and shall 
submit the same for approval and adoption by the Board of Education. 
The Superintendent of Schools shall recommend to the Board of Edu- 
cation for condemnation, school buildings which are insanitary and unfit 
for use; he shall recommend in writing all repairs, the purchase of play- 
grounds, school grounds or school sites, and buildings, or the sale of the 
same, and shall prepare or cause to be prepared aU plans and specifica- 
tions for the remodeling of old buildings and the construction of new 
buildings, subject to the provisions of Section 36 of this Chapter; and he 
shall recommend, in his discretion, to the Board of Education an architect 
or architects to assist in the preparation of plans and specifications for 
remodeling old buildings or the construction of new buildings, and shall 
supervise such remodeling and construction. He shall approve in writ- 
ing all contracts of whatever kind entered into by the Board of Education 
of the respective special school district and no contract entered 
into by the Board of Education of the respective special school district 
shall be valid without the written approval of its Superintendent of 
Schools. 

2326-90. Section 144. The Superintendent of Schools, subject to 
the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regulations of 
the State Board of Education, shall prepare rules and regulations for 
grading and standardizing all the public schools of the district and shall 
submit the same for approval and adoption by the Board of Education. 
He shall grade and standardize all the public schools of the district and 
shall recommend the same for approval by the Board of Education. 

2326-91. Section 145. The Superintendent of Schools, subject to 
the provisions of this Chapter, the prescribed courses of study, and the 
poUcies and rules and regulations of the State Board of Education, and 
of the Board of Education of the respective special school district, shall 
prescribe courses of study for the schools of the respective school district 
and submit the same for approval and adoption by the Board of Educa- 



172 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

tion. Printed copies of these courses of study shall be supplied to every 
teacher and every interested citizen of the district. 

2326-92. Section 146. The Superintendent of Schools shall be the 
representative of the State Commissioner of Education in all State 
examinations for teachers' certificates conducted within the respective 
special school district, and shall perform such duties in connection there- 
with as may be required by the State Commissioner of Education. 

2326-93. Section 147. The Superintendent of Schools shall nomi- 
nate in writing for appointment by the Board of Education, and fix their 
salaries, subject to the provisions of Article 9 of this Chapter and the 
salary provisions of Section 112 of Article 4, and to the approval of the 
Board, all principals, all teachers, supervisors, attendance oflScers, jan- 
itors, and all other regular employees of the Board, shall assign to them 
their positions, transfer them as the needs of the schools require, recom- 
mend them for promotion, suspend them for cause, and recommend them 
for dismissal. 

2326-94. Section 148. The Superintendent of Schools shall organize 
institutes for teachers and citizens, shall organize and direct the reading 
circle work of the district, advise teachers as to their further study and 
professional reading, and assist paitnts and citizens to acquire a knowl- 
edge of the aims and work of the schools of the district. 

2326-95. Section 149. The Superintendent of Schools shall select 
from the textbook list prescribed by the State Board of Education such 
textbooks as are needed by the schools; also select such supplementary 
readers, maps, globes, and charts, materials of instruction, stationery, 
and school supplies, school furniture, educational equipment, apparatus 
and supplies as are necessary to the work of the schools, and recommend 
in writing the adoption, purchase, and distribution of the same by the 
Board of Education of the respective special school district. No con- 
tract for textbooks, supplementary readers, maps, globes, and charts, 
materials of instruction, stationery and school supplies, school furniture, 
educational equipment, apparatus and supplies shall be valid without the 
written approval of the Superintendent of Schools. 

2326-96. Section 150. The Superintendent of Schools shall visit 
the schools, observe the management and instruction, and give sugges- 
tions for the improvement of the same. He shall advise with principals 
and teachers, and shall labor in every way to awaken public interest and 



APPENDIX 173 

improve educational conditions within the respective special school 
district. 

2326-97. Section 151. The Superintendent of Schools, subject to 
the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regulations of the 
State Board of Education, shall prepare forms and blanks upon which 
principals, teachers, supervisors, attendance, oflacers, janitors, and other 
regular employees shall make such reports as shall be required on the 
recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools by the Board of Edu- 
cation, and shall submit the same for approval to the Board of Education. 

2326-98. Section 152. The Superintendent of Schools, subject to 
the provisions of this Chapter, the policies and rules and regulations of 
the State Board of Education, shall prepare the annual school budget 
provided for in Section 131 of this Chapter, and shall submit the same for 
approval and adoption by the Board of Education. He shall in every 
way seek to secure adequate funds for the support and development of 
the schools of the respective special school district. 

2326-99. Section 153. The Superintendent of Schools shall direct 
the taking, in the respective special school district, of the biennial school 
census provided for in Section 20 of this Chapter. 

2326-100. Section 154. The Superintendent of Schools in such 
special school districts as employ attendance ofl&cers, shall, subject to 
the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education, enforce the 
provisions of Article 10 of this Chapter relating to school attendance. 
In such special school districts as do not employ attendance ofl&cers, the 
Superintendents of Schools shall co-operate in every way with the County 
Superintendents of Schools in the enforcement of the provisions of Article 
10 of this Chapter relating to school attendance. 

2326-101. Section 155. The Superintendent of Schools shall pre- 
pare, or cause to be prepared, and submit to the Board of Education for 
adoption, aU reports required by the State Board of Education; and he 
shall prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval to the 
Board of Education the annual report addressed to the people of the 
respective special school district provided for in Section 135 of this 
Chapter. 

2326-102. Section 156. The Superintendent of Schools, acting 
under the rules and regulations of the Board of Education, shall be respon- 
sible for the administration of the oflSce of the Superintendent of Schools, 



174 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

and he shall see that aU regular appointees of the Board of Education 
devote their entire time to their duties. 

2326-103. Section is6-A. The Board of Education shall provide 
the Superintendent of Schools and his professional and clerical assistants 
with ample, convenient, and comfortable ofl&ce quarters, and with ade- 
quate clerical supplies and equipment. 

2326-104. Section 157. The Superintendent of Schools shall per- 
form such other duties as are assigned to him elsewhere in this Chapter, 
or may be assigned to him from time to time by the Board of Education 
and the General Assembly. 

Article 7 
Boards of School Trustees 

2326-105. Section 158. In each school attendance district of the 
county school system there shall be, as the local representative of the 
County Board of Education and as the representative of local educational 
interest, a Board of School Trustees. There shall be one such Board for 
each school attendance district. Boards of school trustees shall be com- 
posed of three members elected from the residents of the several school 
attendance districts at the annual school election for a term of three 
years from the first day of July next succeeding their election, and they 
shall hold office untU their successors qualify. Provided that when this 
Act goes into effect, and as soon after July ist, 1919, as possible, the 
County Boards of Education of the respective counties shall appoint 
from the residents of the several school attendance districts of their 
respective counties three members of the Board of School Trustees of 
the respective school attendance districts in their respective counties, 
who shall take office immediately, and serve untU the first day of July 
1920, and until their respective successors qualify. 

At the school election of 1920, three members shall be elected to the 
Board of Trustees of each school attendance district, one to serve for 
one year, or until the first day of July 1921, one to serve for two years, or 
imtil the first day of July 1922, one to serve for three years, or until the 
first day of July 1923, and untU their respective successors qualify. Pro- 
vided that in the first election under the provisions of this section, the 
candidate receiving the highest number of votes shaU be declared elected 



APPENDIX 175 

for three years; the candidate receiving the next highest number of votes 
shall be declared elected for two years, and the candidate receiving the 
next highest number of votes shall be declared elected for one year. 
Thereafter, one member shall be elected at the school election in each 
school attendance district for the school term of three years. Provided, 
that nominations for members of the Board of School Trustees of the 
respective school attendance districts may be made on the day of the 
school election, and without petition. And provided, also, that the name 
of any person to be voted for as a member of the Board of School Trustees 
may be written upon the baUot of any voter. A County Board of Edu- 
cation may remove any member of a Board of School Trustees of the 
same county for immorality, misconduct in office, incompetency or 
wilful neglect of duty, giving to him a copy of the charges against him, 
and an opportunity of being publicly heard in person, or by counsel in 
his own defense upon not less than ten (lo) days' notice. Vacancies on 
the Boards for any cause shall be filled by the County Boards of Educa- 
tion for the unexpired term, and until his successor qualifies. If, for any 
reason, it should be found impossible to provide any school attendance 
district with a Board of School Trustees, the duties of the Board for the 
particular school attendance district shall devolve upon th» County 
Board of Education. 

2326-106. Section 159. The office of the Board of School Trustees 
shall be the schoolhouse of the respective school attendance district. 
The Board of School Trustees shall meet on the first Saturday in the 
month of July after their election, and shall elect one of its members to 
serve as President, and shall give notice of such election to the Secretary 
of the County Board of Education of the respective County. Other 
regular meetings of the Board shall be held on the third Friday of Sep- 
tember, December, and March, and such special, meetiogs may be held 
as the duties and business of the Board may require. The rules generally 
adopted by deliberative bodies for their government shall be observed 
by the Boards of School Trustees. No motion or resolution shall be 
declared adopted without the consent of a majority of the whole Board. 

2326-107. Section 160. The principal or the teacher or the senior 
teacher of the school of the respective school attendance district shall be 
the Secretary of the Board of School Trustees. The principal or the 
teacher or the senior teacher, thus acting as secretary, shall attend all 



176 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

meetings of the Board, except when the given principal or teacher or 
senior teacher is under consideration; shall have the right to speak upon 
all questions, but shall have no right to vote; shall prepare for adoption 
all reports requested of this Board; shall keep all its records; shall keep 
the minutes of the meetings of the Board and its accounts in a record 
book provided by the County Board of Education, and shall conduct 
the correspondence of the Board. Any teacher of the school of the 
respective school attendance district shall have the right to appear before 
the Board and speak upon any question, but no teacher shall be entitled 
to be present when the respective teacher is under consideration. In 
case the principalship of the school of the respective school attendance 
district is vacant or there is no teacher, or whenever the principal or 
teacher is absent by reason of the business in hand or otherwise, the 
Board shall appoint one of its members to act for the time being as 
Secretary. 

2326-108. Section i6r. The Board of School Trustees shall have 
the care in its respective school attendance district of the buildings and 
land connected therewith intended for school purposes, also the school 
apparatus and other school property. They shall attend to all incidental 
repairs and charge the cost among the incidental expenses of the school 
to be paid by the County Board of Education. Provided that when 
the repairs are to be paid by the County Board of Education, the amount 
to be expended shall be approved by the County Superintendent of 
Schools and authorized by the County Board of Education before the 
repairs are made. 

2326-109. Section 162. The Board of School Trustees shall meet, 
each year, at the call of the President at least two months before the 
usual time of the preparation of the annual school budget by the County 
Board of Education, .to consider the condition and needs of the 
school property of its respective school attendance district, and shall 
report its findings and its recommendations to the County Board of 
Education. 

23 26-1 10. Section i 63 . Any person who shall disturb a pubUc school 
in session or wilfuUy destroy any public school property shall upon con- 
viction thereof, be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall, upon con- 
viction, forfeit and pay twenty dollars ($20), to be collected as other fines, 
and paid to the Board of School Trustees for the benefit of the respective 



APPENDIX 



177 



school attendance district; or said ofiFender shall be imprisoned not ex- 
ceeding thirty days, or both, in the discretion of the court. 

2326-111. Section 164. The Board of School Trustees shall employ 
and fix the salary of a janitor or janitors for the school of its respective 
school attendance district, subject to the approval of the County Super- 
intendent of Schools. No teacher 'shall be required to do janitorial 
service, but where it is impossible or otherwise impracticable to employ 
a janitor or janitors, the Board of School Trustees may employ a teacher, 
or teachers, paying the usual wages for such janitorial service, but the 
amount received for such janitorial service shall not be regarded or con- 
sidered as a part of the teacher's annual salary as a teacher. 

2326-112. Section 165. The Board of School Trustees shall have 
the power to refuse to accept the original assignment of a principal, or 
teacher, or teachers to the school of its respective school attendance dis- 
trict, and on notification of such refusal, the County Superintendent of 
Schools shall name another principal or another teacher for each teacher 
so refused by the Board of School Trustees. Provided, that the County 
Superintendent of Schools shall not be required to name more than two 
principals or two teachers for any one place in said school. 

2326-113. Section 166. The Board of School Trustees shall meet 
at the school of its respective school attendance district on the Saturday 
preceding the day for opening the school for the school year, have present 
the principal, or teacher, and teachers, and discuss the general policy of 
conducting the school, and take definite steps toward making the school 
a real centre for the community's civic and educational activities. 

2326-114. Section 167. The Board of School Trustees shall visit 
the school of its respective school attendance district, and shall seek in 
every way to develop public sentiment in support of the school. In case 
of dissatisfaction, they may file, with the County Board of Education, 
written charges requesting the removal of the principal, or teacher, or 
teachers. 

2326-115. Secpion 168. When the citizens of any community are 
organized into a nonpartisan, nonsectarian, nonexclusive association for 
the presentation and discussion of public questions, such organizations, 
upon request in writing to the Board of School Trustees of any school 
attendance district shall have the free use of the schoolhouse for weekly, 
bi-weekly, or monthly gatherings, or at such times as the citizens' or- 



178 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

ganization shall request or designate; provided that said meetings shall 
be held during those hours when the school building is not being used for 
its principal purpose. 

The Board of School Trustees and Boards of Education of special 
school districts shall allow, on written request, the free use of the school- 
house or schoolhouses under their jurisdiction for farmers' meetings, pub- 
lic speakings, lectures, entertainments, church festivals. Red Cross 
meetings, Y. M. C. A. meetings, political meetings, or for any other pur- 
poses which are for the civic welfare. Provided that the person or per- 
sons making application for the use of a schoolhouse for a public meeting 
shall be responsible for all damage to the property occurring at such 
meeting, ordinary wear and tear excluded, and upon failure of the person 
or persons to respond in damages for any such injury to the property, the 
Board in charge of the schoolhouse may refuse all future applications 
until such injury is repaired without expense to the Board in charge of 
the property. 

Article 8 

Teachers' Certificates 

2326-116. Section 169. The examination and certification of 
ceachers, after July i, 1920, shall be a State function, and all examinations 
for teachers' certificates shall be on uniform questions prepared, subject 
to the approval of the State Board of Education, and sent out by the 
State Commissioner of Education either in person or through his assis- 
tants. All examination papers shall be forwarded to, read, and graded 
by, the State Commissioner of Education, either in person or by his assis- 
tants. The County Superintendents of Schools and the Superintendents 
of Schools of special school districts shall render such assistance in con- 
ducting examinations as may be required by the State Commissioner of 
Education. All details connected with examinations for teachers' 
certificates, the exchange and the renewal of the same, the granting of 
such on certificates or diplomas, and the conditions under which certifi- 
cates, diplomas, and degrees of institutions of the State of Delaware 
and of other States will be recognized, not provided for in this Article, 
shall be determined by the State Board of Education. The Commis- 
sioner of Education shall publish a bulletin containing full information 



APPENDIX 179 

of the time and place, the number and kinds of examinations, the rules 
and regulations controlling examinations, and the issuance of certificates 
on credentials or diplomas. 

2326-117. Section 170. No person shall be employed as county su- 
perintendent of schools, superintendent of schools of a special school 
district, assistant superintendent, supervisor, principal, or teacher unless 
such person shall hold a certificate issued by the State Board of Educa- 
tion, of the kind and grade required for the position, but any county or 
special school district may require as a condition of employment a 
higher standard for a certificate of a similar kind and grade than is re- 
quired by the State. Provided that all teachers' certificates in force at 
the time this Section-goes into effect shall be exchanged for State certifi- 
cates of equal time value and validity. Provided further, that no cer- 
tificate heretofore issued shall be valid after this Section goes into effect, 
for appointment to the position of county superintendent of schools 
superintendent of schools of a special school district, assistant superin- 
tendent, supervisor, high school principal, high school and elementary 
school principal, or elementary school principal in elementary schools 
having three teachers or more, including the principal, high school 
teacher, or elementary school teacher in special school districts, except 
in case of persons holding the foregoing positions at the time this Section 
goes into effect, and then valid only in the particular county or special 
school district in which they are employed at the time this Section goes 
into effect. 

2326-118. Section 171. The certificates hereafter to be granted 
shall be: 

(i) A certificate in administration and supervision, valid throughout 
the State for three years, renewable for three year periods on evidence of 
successful experience and professional spirit and required of all county 
superintendents, may be issued to persons who are graduates of a standi 
ard college or university, who have completed in addition one graduate 
year's work at a recognized university, including public school adminis- 
tration, supervision, and method of teaching, and who have had five (5) 
years' experience as administrator or teacher. 

(2) A certificate in elementary school supervision, valid throughout 
the State for three years, renewable for three year periods on evidence of 
successful experience and professional spirit, and required of assistant 



i8o NEW SCHOOL CODE 

superintendents and elementary school supervisors, may be granted to 
persons who are graduates of a two year standard normal school, who 
have completed in addition two academic years' work at a standard 
college or university, including academic branches related to the elemen- 
tary school and elementary school methods and supervision, and who 
have had three (3) years' experience in elementary schools as supervisor 
or teacher. Such a certificate may also be granted to persons who are 
graduates of a four year course of a standard college or university, who 
have had as a part of their college or university course, work in academic 
branches related to the elementary school and in elementary school 
methods and supervision, and who have had three (3) years' experience in 
elementary schools as supervisor or teacher. 

(3) A certificate in supervision (special), valid throughout the State 
for three years, renewable for three year periods on evidence of successful 
experience and professional spirit, and required of special supervisors in 
physical training, music, fine and applied arts, household arts, manual or 
industrial training, agriculture, etc., may be granted to persons who have 
had four years of work of a college grade, who have specialized in the 
branch or branches for which the certificate is issued, including the art 
of teaching and supervising their particular specialty, and who have had 
three (3) years' experience as supervisor or teacher of their specialty. 

(4) A superintendent of schools' certificate, valid in all special school 
districts of the State for three years, renewable for three year periods on 
evidence of successful experience and professional spirit, and also valid 
as a high school principal's certificate, and required in all special school 
districts, may be granted to persons who are graduates of a standard 
college or university, who have had in addition a year's graduate work 
at a standard university, including elementary school and high school 
methods, supervision and administration, and who have had three (3) 
years' experience as administrator, principal, or teacher. 

(s) A high school principal's certificate, valid throughout the State 
for three years, renewable for three year periods on evidence of successful 
experience and professional spirit, and required in all first class State 
aided high schools, may be granted to persons who are graduates of a 
standard college or university, who have had in addition a year's graduate 
work at a standard university, including high school methods, supervi- 
sion, and administration, and who have had two (2) years' experience 



APPENDIX i8i 

as principal or teacher. This certificate is also valid in second class State 
aided high schools. 

(6) A high and elementary school principal's certificate valid through- 
out the State for three years, renewable for three year periods on evidence 
of successful experience and professional spirit, and required in all State 
aided high schools of the second class and in all schools rated as high 
schools by the Commissioner of Education, may be granted to persons 
who are graduates of a standard college or university, who have had, 
as a part of their college or university course, work in the teaching of 
elementary school and high school subjects and in supervision and ad- 
ministration, and who have had one (i) year's experience as principal or 
teacher. This certificate is also valid in an elementary school, when 
such elementary school is in the same building as a second class State 
aided high school or school rated as a high school by the State Com- 
missioner of Education. 

" (7) A high school teacher's certificate in the regular academic studies, 
valid throughout the State for three years, renewable for three year 
periods on evidence of successful experience and professional spirit, and 
required in aU State aided high schools and all schools rated as high 
schools by the State Commissioner of Education, may be granted to 
persons who are graduates of a standard college or university, provided 
that during their college course at least two high school branches were 
continuously pursued for two years, and that they have had work in the 
aims and methods of secondary education, and practice teaching of high 
school studies; provided further that the State Commissioner of Educa- 
tion may in his discretion certificate persons possessing the foregoing 
qualifications to teach in the advanced grades of elementary schools. 

(8) A high school teacher's certificate in the special branches of 
music, manual or industrial training, household arts, fine and applied 
arts, commercial branches, physical training, agriculture, etc., valid 
throughout the State for three years, renewable for three year periods on 
evidence of successful experience and professional spirit, and required 
in all State aided high schools and all schools rated as high schools by 
the State Commissioner of Education, may be granted to persons who 
have had four years' work of a college grade, and who have specialized 
in the branch or branches for which the certificate is issued, including the 
art of teaching their particular specialty. 



i82 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

(9) An elementary school principal's certificate, valid throughout the 
State for three years, renewable for three year periods on evidence of 
successful experience and professional spirit, and required in all elemen- 
tary schools having three or more teachers including the principal may be 
granted to persons who have completed a two year standard normal 
school course, who have had in addition not less than a full half year's 
work at a recognized college or university in elementary school methods, 
supervision, and administration, and who have had three (3) years* 
teaching experience. Such a certificate may also be granted to persons 
having had equivalent academic and professional work in a recognized 
coUege or university and who have had three (3) years' teaching 
experience. 

(10) An elementary school teacher's certificate of the first grade, 
valid for three years in the elementary schools of the State, required in 
the elementary schools of all special school districts, renewable for three 
year periods on evidence of successful experience and professional spirit, 
may be issued to persons who have completed a two year professional 
elementary school course in a standard normal school, coUege or univer- 
sity. Provided also that an elementary school teacher's certificate of the 
first grade, valid for three years in the kindergarten and first three pri- 
mary grades of the elementary schools of the State,required in the elemen- 
taiy schools of all special school districts, and renewable for three year 
periods on evidence of successful experience and professional spirit, may 
be granted to persons who have completed a two year professional course 
in kindergarten or in primary work in a standard normal school, college 
or university. Provided further that elementary school teachers' cer- 
tificates of no other grade may be issued after July ist, 1935. 

(11) An elementary school teacher's certificate of the second grade, 
vahd for two years in the elementary schools of the State, except in the 
elementary schools of special school districts, may be issued to graduates 
of high schools having a four year course, or the equivalent, on examina- 
tion in reading, spelling, handwriting, arithmetic, oral and written 
English, geography, history of the United States and of Delaware, com- 
munity civics, elementary science, hygiene and sanitation, music, draw- 
ing, handwork, physical training, the theory and practice of teaching, 
and such other subjects as may be required by the State Board of Educa- 
tion. Provided that no applicant shall be granted such a certificate 



APPENDIX 183 

who has not completed at least six weeks of professional preparation in 
a standard institution, nor shall such certificate be issued to any person 
under twenty (20) years of age. Provided further, that this certificate 
may be renewed for a period of two years on evidence of successful ex- 
perience and completion of not less than six weeks of additional academic 
and professional preparation in a standard institution. This certificate 
may be renewed for a second time for a period of three years, next suc- 
ceeding or otherwise, on evidence of successful experience and completion 
of not less than six additional weeks of academic and professional prep- 
aration in a standard institution, and so on for an indefinite number of 
three year periods, successive or otherwise; but this certificate may not 
be issued a second time to the same person on examination. Elementary 
school teachers' certificates of this grade may not be issued after July 
jst, 1935. 

(12) An elementary school teacher's certificate of the third grade, 
valid for two years in the elementary schools of the State, except in the 
elementary schools of special school districts, may be issued to persons 
having had less than a four year high school course, on examination in 
reading, spelling, handwriting, arithmetic, oral and written English, 
geography, history of the United States and Delaware, community 
civics, elementary school science, hygiene and sanitation, physical train- 
ing, the theory and practice of teaching, and such other subjects as may 
be required by the State Board of Education. Provided that no appli- 
cant shall be granted such a certificate who has not completed at least 
six weeks of professional preparation in a standard institution, nor shall 
such certificate be issued to any person under twenty (20) years of age. 
Provided, that this certificate may be renewed for one year on presenta- 
tion of evidence of successful experience and completion of not less than 
six weeks of additional academic and professional preparation in a stand- 
ard institution. Provided further, that this certificate may be renewed 
for a second time for a period of three years, next succeeding or otherwise, 
on evidence of successful experience and completion of an additional 
six weeks of academic and professional preparation in a standard institu- 
tion, and so on for an indefinite number of three year periods, successive 
or otherwise; but this certificate may not be issued a second time to the 
same person on examination. Elementary school teachers' certificates, 
of this grade may not be issued after July ist, 1930. 



i84 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

(13) County Superintendents of Schools may issue elementary school 
teachers' certificates of the second and third grade, valid only in their 
respective counties and valid only until the next State examination. 
Such provisional certificates may not be renewed unless such renewal 
is approved by the State Commissioner of Education. Nor shall such 
provisional certificates be issued to persons under twenty (20) years of 
age. Provided further, that the State Board of Education in co-operation 
with the Federal Board for Vocational Education shall fix the standards 
for the certification of teachers in vocational schools or classes receiving 
Federal Aid. 

2326-120. Section 172. Any County Board of Education or any 
Board of Education of a special school district may, on the recommenda- 
tion of its respective Superintendent of Schools, suspend any teacher, 
principal, supervisor, or assistant superintendent, for immorality, mis- 
conduct in ofl&ce, incompetency, or wilful neglect of duty, and may recom- 
mend to the State Commissioner of Education the revocation of the 
certificate of such person stating in writing the grounds for such recom- 
mendations, and gi\ang an opportunity, upon not less than ten days' 
notice, to be heard in defense, in person or by counsel, and the State 
Board of Education may order such investigations as it may deem neces- 
sary. If the State Board of Education approves the recommendation, 
the person's certificate shall be revoked and the person shall be dropped 
from the service. 

2326-121. Section 173. The State Commissioner of Education shall 
keep a full and complete record of the academic preparation, the pro- 
fessional training and teaching experience of each applicant to whom a 
certificate is issued. He shall keep a complete record and file of all 
certificates issued and of all certificates in force. He shall make known 
to County Superintendents and to Superintendents of special school 
districts the names of teachers holding certificates who are unemployed, 
but seeking positions and no provisional certificate may be issued by a 
County Superintendent when it is possible to employ persons holding 
regularly issued certificates; nor shall persons be employed in the elemen- 
tary schools of a county school system holding elementary school teachers' 
certificates of the third grade when it is possible to employ persons 
holding elementary school teachers' certificates of the second grade; nor 
shall persons be employed holding elementary school teachers' certificates 



APPENDIX 185 

of che second grade when it is possible to employ persons holding elemen- 
tary school teachers' certificates of the first grade. 

2326-122. Section 174. Principals' and teachers' certificates shall 
be of two classes: first class and second class. All principals' and 
teachers' certificates issued by the State Board of Education shall, when 
issued, be of the second class, and shall be subject to classification by 
County Superintendents and Superintendents of Schools of special school 
districts. The certificates of all principals and teachers employed shall 
be respectively classified by County Superintendents and Superintendents 
of Schools of special school districts not less than once in two years. In 
determining the class of the certificate of a particular principal or teacher, 
the following points are to be considered: (a) scholarship; (b) executive 
ability; (c) personality; and (d) teaching power. County Superinten- 
dents and Superintendents of Schools of special school districts may add 
such other requirements as are approved by the State Commissioner of 
Education. County Superintendents of Schools and Superintendents 
of Schools of special school districts shall keep a record of the kind, grade, 
and class of certificate held by each principal and teacher employed and 
on or before the first day of October each year shall submit to their 
respective Boards of Education a list of all principals and teachers em- 
ployed, together with the kind, grade, and class of their certificates, and 
a copy of this report shall be transmitted to the State Commissioner of 
Education. 

Article 9 
Teachers^ Salaries 

2326-123. Section 175. No teacher holding a provisional elemen- 
tary school teacher's certificate of the third grade shaU be employed in 
any free public school of the State at an annual salary of less than four 
hundred dollars ($400) ; and no teacher holding a provisional elementary 
school teacher's certificate of the second grade shall be employed in any 
free public school of the State at an annual salary of less than four 
hundred and fifty dollars ($450). 

2326-124. Section 176. No teacher holding an elementary school 
teacher's certificate of the third grade as defined in Article 8 of this Chap- 
ter shall be employed in any free public school of the State at an annual 



i86 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

salary of less than five hundred dollars ($500). Provided that if such 
teacher holding an elementary school teacher's certificate of the third 
grade, classified as first class, as provided for in Article 8 of this Chapter, 
has taught in the free public schools of the State two (2) full school years, 
such teacher shall thereafter receive an.ann'ual salary of not less than six 
hundred dollars ($600) ; provided further that if such teacher holding an 
elementary school teacher's certificate of the third ^rade, classified as 
first class, has taught in the free public schools of the State four (4) full 
•school years, such teacher shall thereafter receive an annual salary of not 
less than seven hundred dollars ($700); and provided further that if 
Buch teacher holding an elementary school teacher's certificate of the 
third grade, classified as first class, has taught in the free public schools 
of the State six (6) full school years, such teacher shall thereafterj:eceive 
an annual salary of not less than eight hundred, dollars. (|8oo). 

2326-125. Section 177. No teacher" holding an elementary school 
teacher's certificate of the second grade, as defined in Article 8 of this 
Chapter, shall be employed in any free public school of the State at an 
annual salary of less than six hundred dollars ($6ooj. 'Provided that if 
such teacher holding an elementary school teacher's certificate of the 
second grade, classified as first class as provided for in Article 8 of this 
Chapter, has taught in the free public schools, of the State two (2} full 
school years, such teacher shall thereafter receive an annual salary of not 
less than seven hundred dollars ($700); provided further that if such 
teacher holding an elementary school teacher's certificate of the second 
grade classified as first class, has taught in the free public schools of the 
State four (4) full school years such teacher shall thereafter receive an 
annual salary of not less than eight hundred dollars ($800) ; and provided 
further that if such teacher holding an elementary school teacher's certi- 
ficate of the second grade, classified as first class, has taught in free public 
schools of the State six (6) full school years, such teacher shall thereafter 
receive an annual salary of not less than nine hundred dollars (S900) . 

2326-126. Section 178. No teacher holding an elementary school 
teacher's certificate of the first grade, as defined in Article 8 of this Chap- 
ter, shall be employed in any free public school of the State at an annual 
salary of less than seven hundred and fifty dollars (I750). Provided 
that if such teacher holding an elementary school teacher's certificate 
of the first grade, classified as first class as provided for in Article 8 of this 



APPENDIX 187 

Chapter, has taught in the free public schools of the State two (2) full 
school years, such teacher shall thereafter receive an annual salary of not 
less than eight hundred and fifty dollars ($850); provided further that 
if such teacher holding an elementary school teacher's certificate of the 
first grade, classified as first class, has taught in the free public schools of 
the State four f4) fuU school years, such teacher shall thereafter receive 
an annual salary of not less than nine hundred and fifty dollars ($950) ; 
and provided further that if such teacher holding an elementary school 
teacher's certificate of the first grade, classified as first class, has taught 
in the free public schools of the State six (6) full school years, such 
teacher shall thereafter receive an annual salary of not less than one 
thousand and fifty dollars ($1050). 

2326-127. Section 179. No principal holding an elementary school 
principal's certificate, as defined in Article 8 of this Chapter, shall be 
employed as principal in any free public elementary school of the State 
having three or more teachers including the principal, at an annual salary 
of less than nine hundred and fifty dollars ($950). Provided that if such 
a principal holding an elementary school principal's certificate, classified 
as fiirst class as provided for in Article 8 of this Chapter, has served as 
principal of a free public elementary school of the State having three or 
more teachers including the principal, two (2) full school years, such prin- 
cipal shall thereafter receive an annual salary of not less than one thou- 
sand and fifty dollars ($1050); provided further that if such principal 
holding an elementary school principal's certificate, classified as first 
class, has served as principal of a free public elementary school of the 
State having three or more teachers including the principal four (4) full 
school years, such principal shall thereafter receive an annual salary of 
not less than eleven hundred and fifty dollars ($1150); and provided 
further that if such principal holding an elementary school principal's 
certificate, classified as first class, has served as principal of a free public 
elementary school of the State having three or more teachers including 
the principal six (6) fuU school years, such principal shall thereafter 
receive an annual salary of not less than twelve hundred and fifty dollars 
($1250). 

2326-128. Section 180. No teacher holding a high school teacher's 
certificate as defined in Article 8 of this Chapter, shall be employed in any 
free public high school of the State at an annual salary of less than eight 



jgg NEW SCHOOL CODE 

hundred dollars ($800). Provided that if such teacher holding a high 
school teacher's certificate, classified as first class as provided for in Article 
8 of this Chapter, has taught in a free public high school of the State two 
(2) full school years, such teacher shall thereafter receive an annual 
salary of not less than one thousand dollars ($icoo); provided further 
that if such teacher holding a high school teacher's certificate, classified 
as first class, has taught in a free public high school of the State four (4) 
full school years, such teacher shall thereafter receive an annual salary of 
not less than twelve hundred dollars ($1200); and provided further that if 
such teacher holding a high school teacher's certificate, classified as first 
class, has taught in a free public high school of the State six (6) full school 
years, such teacher shall thereafter receive an annual salary of not less 
than fourteen hundred dollars ($1400). 

2326-129. Section 181. No principal holding a high and elementary 
school principal's certificate as defined in Article 8 of this Chapter shall be 
employed in any free public high and elementary school of the State at an 
annual salary of less than one thousand dollars ($1000). Provided that if 
such principal holding a high and elementary school principal's certificate 
classified as first class as provided for in Article 8 of this Chapter, has 
served as principal of a free public high and elementary school of the State 
two (2) full school years, such principal shall thereafter receive an annual 
salary of not less than twelve hundred dollars ($1200); provided further 
that if such principal holding a high and elementary school principal's 
certificate, classified as first class, has served as principal of a free public 
high and elementary school of the State four (4) full school years, such 
principal shall thereafter receive an annual salary of not less than fourteen 
hundred dollars ($1400) ; and provided further that if such principal hold- 
ing a high and elementary school principal's certificate, classified as first 
class, has served as principal of a free public high and elementary school 
of the State six (6) full school years, such principal shall thereafter receive 
an annual salary of not less than sixteen hundred doUars ($1600). 

2326-130. Section 182. No principal holding a high school prin- 
cipal's certificate as defined in Article 8 of this Chapter shall be employed 
in any free public high school of the fiirst class of the State at an annual 
salary of less than twelve hundred dollars ($1 200) . Provided that if such 
principal holding a high school principal's certificate, classified as first 
dass as provided for in Article 8 of this Chapter, has served as principal 



APPENDIX 189 

of a free public high school of the first class of the State two (2) full school 
years, such principal shall thereafter receive an annual salary of not less 
than fourteen hundred dollars ($1400) ; provided further that if such prin- 
cipal holding a high school principal's certificate, classified as first class, 
has served as principal of a free public high school of the first class of the 
State four (4) full school years, such principal shall thereafter receive an 
annual salary of not less than sixteen hundred dollars ($1600); and pro- 
vided further that if such principal holding a high school principal's certi- 
ficate, classified as first class, has served as principal of a free public high 
school of the first class of the State six (6) full school years, such principal 
shall thereafter receive an annual salary of not less than eighteen hundred 
dollars ($1800). 

2326-131. Section 183. No superintendent of schools holding a 
superintendent of schools' certificate as defined in Article 8 of this Chapter 
shall be employed as superintendent of the free public schools of any 
special school district of the State at an annual salary of less than sixteen 
hundred dollars ($1 600) . Provided that if such superintendent of schools 
holding a superintendent of schools' certificate has served as superinten- 
dent of the free public schools of any special school district of the State 
two (2) fuU school years, such superintendent of schools shall thereafter 
receive an annual salary of not less than eighteen hundred dollars ($1800) ; 
provided further that if such superintendent of schools holding a superin- 
tendent of schools' certificate has served as superintendent of the free 
public schools of any special school district of the State four (4) full 
school years, such superintendent of schools shall thereafter receive an 
annual salary of not less than two thousand dollars ($2000); provided 
further that if such superintendent of schools holding a superintendent of 
schools' certificate has served as superintendent of the free public schools 
of any special school district of the State six (6) full school years, such 
superintendent of schools shall thereafter receive an annual salary of not 
less than twenty-two hundred dollars ($2200). 

2326-132. Section 184. Any County Board of Education or any 
Board of Education of a special school district may pay higher salaries 
than are prescribed in the scale of salaries provided for in this Article, 
but no County Board of Education or Board of Education of a special 
school district may pay lower salaries than are provided for in this Article; 
and the salary of no superintendent of schools, principal, or teacher 



igo NEW SCHOOL CODE 

employed at the time this Article goes into effect shall be diminished by 
reason of the provisions of this Article, but every superintendent of 
schools, principal, and teacher shall be entitled to any increase in salary 
beginning with the school year 1919-1920 that may herein be granted 
when this Article goes into effect; provided that the length of service 
required to give additional salary, as provided in this Article, shall be 
reckoned from the date of the approval of this Act. 

2326-133. Section 185. Every County Board of Education and 
every Board of Education of a special school district is authorized, em- 
powered, directed, and required to provide in its respective annual 
school budget funds to meet the scale of salaries provided for in this 
Article. 

2326-134. Section 186. The salaries of county superintendents of 
schools, supervisors, attendance officers, superintendents of schools, 
principals, teachers, and of all other regular employees of County Boards 
of Education and of Boards of Education of special school districts shall 
be paid monthly, on or before the tenth (10th) day of each calendar month 
succeeding that for which the salary is due, but no person shall be entitled 
to receive payment for services unless all required current records are 
accurately and correctly kept and all required reports are made and sub- 
mitted. 

Article 10 
School Attendance 

2326-135. Section 187. Every parent, guardian or other person in 
this State having control of a child between the ages of seven and fourteen 
is required to and shall send such child to a free public school during the 
entire period of each year the free public schools of the county or the 
special school district in which said child resides are in session, unless it 
can be shown to the satisfaction, and witnessed by written endorsement, 
of the respective County Superintendent of Schools or to the respective 
Superintendent of Schools of the given special school district that such 
child is elsewhere receiving regular and thorough instruction during such 
period in the studies taught in the free public schools of the State to 
children of the same age and stage of advancement. Provided that the 
County Superintendents of Schools and the Superintendents of Schools 



APPENDIX 191 

of special school districts, or persons duly authorized by such Superin- 
tendents of Schools, may excuse, subject to the rules and regulations 
of the State Board of Education, cases of necessary and legal absence of 
pupils enrolled in the public schools. Provided further that the provi- 
sions of this Section shall not apply to children whose mental or physical 
condition, as attested by a physician's certificate, is such as to render the 
instruction above described inexpedient or impracticable. And provided 
further that private teachers in families, and principals and teachers in 
private schools and educational institutions, whose instruction in lieu of 
public school attendance has the written endorsement of the respective 
County Superintendent of Schools or of the Superintendent of Schools 
of the given special school district, may excuse, subject to the rules and 
regulations of the State Board of Education, cases of necessary and legal 
absence of pupils from school work, but such private teachers and such 
principals and teachers in private schools and educational institutions 
shall make, to the respective County Superintendent of Schools or re- 
spective Superintendent of Schools of the given special school district, 
all reports on the attendance of children in their charge and under their 
instruction as may be required by the State Board of Education. 

2326-136. Section 188. Every person, guardian, or other person 
in this State having control of a child fourteen years of age or fifteen years 
of age or sixteen years of age, who has not completed the work of the 
eighth grade of the free public schools, is required to and shall send such 
child to the free public schools of the county or special school district in 
which the child resides, not less than one hundred (100) days, as nearly 
consecutive as possible, beginning not later than November first, during 
the period of each year the free pubhc schools of the respective county or 
special school district are in session; and such child shall be sent to school 
the entire period of each year, the free public schools of the respective 
county or special school district are in session if not regularly or legally 
employed to labor at home or elsewhere, unless it can be shown to the 
satisfaction, and witnessed by written endorsement, of the County Su- 
perintendent of Schools or of the respective Superintendent of Schools of 
the given special school district that such child is elsewhere receiving 
regular and thorough instruction during such period in the studies taught 
in the free public schools of the State to children of the same age and 
i^tage of advancement. Provided that the provisions of this Section shall 



192 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

not apply to children whose mental or physical condition, as attested by a 
physician's certificate, is such as to render the instruction above described 
inexpedient or impracticable. Provided further that private teachers, 
principals and teachers in private schools and educational institutions 
shall make to the respective County Superintendent of Schools or Super- 
intendent of Schools of the given special school district, all reports on the 
attendance of such children in their charge and under their instruction as 
may be required by the State Board of Education. 

2326-137. Section 189. For every neglect of duty imposed by 
Sections 187 and 188 of this Article on parents, guardians, or other per- 
sons, the parents, guardians, or other persons offending shall be guilty of 
a misdemeanor, and shall upon conviction thereof forfeit a fine of not less 
than five dollars ($5) or more than twenty-five dollars ($25) on first con- 
viction, and a fine of not less than twenty-five dollars ($25) or more than 
fifty dollars ($50) for each subsequent conviction, and in default of pay- 
ment of said fijie, the defendant may be committed to the county prison 
for a period not exceeding two (2) days for the first conviction, and for a 
period not exceeding five (5) days for each subsequent conviction. Pro- 
vided, however, that before such action shall be brought for any of the 
aforesaid penalties, the parent, guardian, or other person liable therefor, 
shall be notified in writing by the County Superintendent of Schools or 
by the Superintendent of Schools of the special district, according to the 
residence of the offending person, of such liability, and shall have op- 
portunity, by compUance with the requirement of this Article within 
three school days then and thereafter to avoid the imposition of such 
penalty. The mailing of such notice to the usual address of the offending 
party shall be deemed sufficient under this Article. But after such notice 
has been given, if the same chUd is absent from school three days or their 
equivalent in time during the remaining period of compulsory attendance, 
without excuse provided for by Section 187 of this Article, the parent, 
guardian, or person in parental relation, shall be liable to prosecution 
under this Article without further notice. 

2326-138. Section 190. The fines provided for by this Article, shall, 
when collected, be paid over by the officers collecting the same, to the 
Treasurer of the Coimty Board of Education or of the Board of Education 
of the special school district, according to the residence of the person 
convicted, to be accounted for by such Treasurer as other moneys raised 



APPENDIX 193 

for school purposes; such fines shall be collected by a process of law similar 
to the collection of other fines. 

2326-139. Section 191. It shall be the duty of attendance officers 
to apprehend or arrest without warrant truants and those who fail to 
attend school in accordance with the provisions of Sections 187 and 188 
of this Article. When an attendance officer apprehends or arrests a 
truant or other person, as herein set forth, he shall have power immedi- 
ately to place him or her in the free public schools in which he or she is or 
should be enrolled; or to place such child, at the expense of the parent, 
guardian, or person in parental relation, under such private person, or in 
such private school or educational institution, as is provided for in Sec- 
tion 187 of this Article, when so requested. 

2326-140. Section 192. The Board of Education of any county, 
on the recommendation of the County Superintendent of Schools, and the 
Board of Education of any special school district, on the recommendation 
of its respective Superintendent of Schools, (either separately or jointly), 
may establish special schools for children who are habitual truants or 
who are insubordinate or disorderly during their attendance upon in- 
struction in the free public schools, and may provide for the proper care, 
maintenance and instruction of such children in such schools and for such 
period of time as the respective Board, on the recommendation of its 
respective Superintendent of Schools, may prescribe. But before the 
pupU shall be placed in such special school, the parent, guardian, or per- 
son in parental relation shall have opportunity to be heard. 

2326-141. Section 193. All truancy and incorrigibility shall be 
deemed disorderly conduct, and in case no special school, as herein pre- 
scribed, has been established, the County Superintendent of Schools and 
the Superintendents of Schools of special school districts shall proceed 
against such truant or incorrigible pupil as a disorderly person, and upon 
conviction the pupil may be sentenced for a definite time to the Ferris 
Industrial School for Boys or Delaware Industrial School for Girls. The 
State Treasurer shall pay to the authorities of the said school the sum of 
fifty cents (50 cents) per day, from money not otherwise appropriated, 
for each day such pupU is confined in said institution. 

2326-142. Section 194. County Superintendents of Schools and Su- 
perintendents of Schools in special school districts, or persons designated 
by such superintendents, shall issue employment certificates, permits 



194 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

and badges, and the principal or the head teacher of the several free 
public schools, and private teachers and the principal or head teacher of 
private schools or educational institutions provided for in Section 187 
of this Article shall make out and sign such records as are req|uired by the 
laws regulating child labor as provided by Article 3 of Chapter Ninety 
of the Revised Code. 

Article ii 
Importation of Dependent Children 

2326-143. Section 195. It shall be unlawful for any person, associa- 
tion, or corporation to bring or send, or cause to be brought or sent, into 
the State of Delaware, any dependent child, for the purpose of placing 
such child in any home in this State, or for the purpose of procuring the 
placing of such child in any home by indenture, adoption or otherwise, 
without first obtaining the written consent of the State Commissioner of 
Education, and giving bond, as hereinafter provided. 

2326-144. Section 196. Before any child shall be brought into this 
State for any of the purposes provided in Section 195 of this Article, the 
person, association, or corporation desiring to bring or send any such 
child into this State, shall execute a bond to the State of Delaware in the 
penal sum of three thousand dollars ($3000) to be approved by the State 
Commissioner of Education, and to be with surety, if the said State 
Commissioner of Education shall so require. The condition of said bond 
shall be substantially that such person, association or corporation shall 
not bring or send, or cause to be brought or sent into, this State any child 
that is incorrigible, that is of unsound mind or body, or that is feeble- 
minded; that such person, association or corporation shall at once, upon 
the placing of any child, report to the State Commissioner of Education 
the name and age of such child, and the name and residence of the person 
with whom placed; that if any such child shall become a public charge 
before reaching the age of twenty-one years, such person, association or 
corporation shall, within thirty days after written notice given by the 
State Commissioner of Education, remove such child from the State; 
that if, within three years from the time of its arrival in the State, any 
such child shall be convicted of crime, or misdemeanor, and be impris- 
oned, that such person, association, or corporation, shall remove any 



APPENDIX 195 

such child from the State immediately upon its being released from im- 
prisonment, and, upon failure to remove any such child, after thirty days' 
notice and demand so to do, or to remove any child that has been con- 
victed as aforesaid, such person, association or corporation, shall, at once, 
pay to the county, or municipality, wherein the expense was incurred in 
behalf of such child, such sum as the said county, or municipality, shall 
have expended in the care, maintenance, or prosecution of such child; 
that, in placing any child, such person, association, or corporation shall 
and will enter into contract with the person, with whom placed, requiring 
that such child shall receive a proper home and suitable care, training and 
education; that such person, association, or corporation shall properly 
supervise the care and training of every such child, and that every such 
child shall be visited, at least once a year, by a responsible agent or repre- 
sentative' of the person, association or corporation placing the child; and 
that such reports shall be made to the State Commissioner of Education 
as the State Board of Education may from time to time require. 

2326-145. Section 197. The State Board of Education shall have 
general supervision in relation to the importation, placing, removal and 
supervision of all children placed under the provisions of this Article, and 
shall make such rules and regulations in relation thereto, and in relation 
to the rejection of incorrigible, unsound or feeble-minded children, and 
to the removal of children who have been convicted of crime, or who 
have become a public charge, as the State Board of Education may deem 
necessary and nroper, not inconsistent with the provisions of this 
Article. 

2326-146. Section 198. Any person, association, or corporation, 
or any officer, agent or employee thereof, who shall violate any of the 
provisions of this Article, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon con- 
viction, shall be fined not less than fifty dollars ($50) or more than one 
hundred dollars ($100). 

Article 12 

High Schools 

2326-147. Section 199. For the encouragement of high school edu- 
cation in Delaware, the State shall extend aid to such classes or groups 
of high schools, in such amounts, in such manner, and on such conditions 



19^ NEW SCHOOL CODE 

as hereinafter designated and described. All high schools of the State 
of Delaware receiving State aid shall be arranged by the State Com- 
missioner of Education, subject to the provisions of this Article and the 
rules and regulations of the State Board of Education, as first class 
or first group high schools, and as second class or second group high 
schools. 

First class or first group high schools shall meet and continue to fulfill 
the following minimum conditions and such other conditions as may be 
prescribed by the State Board of Education: (i) Each such high school 
shall be in session not less than one hundred and eighty (i8o) days each 
school year and give not less than four (4) years of high school instruction. 
(2) There shall be over each such high school a principal giving not less 
than one-fourth of his time to high school supervision; such principal may 
either be the Superintendent of Schools, holding a Superintendent of 
Schools' certificate as defined in Article 8 of this Chapter, or a principal 
holding a high school principal's certificate as defined in Article 8 of this 
Chapter. (3) There shall be employed in each such high school at least 
three (3) teachers, or the equivalent in time, of the usual high school 
studies, exclusive of science, each holding a high school teacher's certifi- 
cate as defined in Article 8 of this Chapter. (4) There shall be employed 
in each such high school at least the following special high school teachers, 
each holding a high school teacher's certificate as defined in Article 8 of 
this Chapter: (a) a teacher of the industrial and the appUed arts for boys, 
(b) a teacher of the household and applied arts for girls, and (c) a teacher 
of science and agriculture; such special high school teachers shall give to 
daily instruction such time as shall be determined by the rules and regula- 
tions of the State Board of Education. And (5) there may be employed 
in each such high school (a) on part or full time, a teacher of the com- 
mercial branches, (b) on part or full time, a teacher of music, (c) on part 
or full time, a teacher of physical training, and (d) on part or full time, 
such other teachers, each holding high school teachers' certificates as 
defined in Article 8 of this Chapter, as the respective Board of Education, 
on the recommendation of its Superintendent of Schools and subject to 
the approval of the State Commissioner of Education, may deem neces- 
sary to meet the high school needs of the community. 

Second class or second group high schools shall meet and continue to 
' meet the following minimum conditions and such other conditions as may 



APPENDIX 197 

be prescribed by the State Board of Education: (i) Each such high 
school shall be in session not less than one hundred and eighty (180) days 
in each school year and give not less than two (2) or more than three (3) 
years of high school instruction. (2) There shall be over each such 
high school a principal holding a high and elementary school principal's 
certificate as defined in Article 8 of this Chapter and giving not less than 
one fourth of his time to high school supervision. (3) There shall be 
employed in each such high school at least two (2) teachers, or the 
equivalent in time, of the usual high school studies, exclusive of science, 
each holding a high school teacher's certificate as defined in Article 8 of 
this Chapter. (4) There shall be employed in each such high school at 
least the following special high school teachers, each holding a high school 
teacher's certificate as defined in Article 8 of this Chapter: (a) a teacher 
of the industrial and applied arts for boys, (b) a teacher of the household 
and applied arts for girls, and (c) a teacher of science and agriculture; 
such special high school teachers shall give to daily instruction such time 
as shall be determined by the rules and regulations of the State Board of 
Education. And (5) there may be employed in each such high school 
(a) on part or full time, a teacher of the commercial branches, (b) on part 
or full time a teacher of music, (c) on part or full time, a teacher of 
physical training, and (d) on part or fuU time, such other teachers, each 
holding a high school teacher's certificate as defined in Article 8 of this 
Chapter, as the respective Board of Education, on the recommendation 
of the Superintendent of Schools and subject to the approval of the State 
Commissioner of Education, may deem necessary to meet the high school 
needs of the community. 

2326-148. Section 200. It shall be the duty of the State Commis- 
sioner of Education or an assistant designated by him to make an aimual 
inspection of all high schools receiving State aid, and also such other 
schools as make application, through their respective Boards of Educa- 
tion, to receive said State aid. The State Commissioner of Education 
shall, on or before the fifteenth day of September of each year, prepare a 
list of high schools and submit the names for approval and adoption by 
the State Board of Education, designating the group to which each be- 
longs, the amount of said State aid to which each is entitled, and to whom 
the same shall be paid. The preparation of this list shall be based on 
information obtained through inspection, supervision, written reports of 



198 NEW SCHOOL CO];)E 

the principal or Superintendent of Schools or other reliable sources. He 
shall certify this list as approved and adopted by the State Board of 
Education to the State Treasurer, on or before the fifteenth day of Sep- 
tember of each year, and the State Treasurer shall pay said amounts as 
certified above, on or before October the first of each year, to the Treas- 
urers of the respective Boards of Education. Provided that not more 
than one high school for white children and not more than one high 
school for colored children in the same city or town shall be granted State 
aid, unless each additional high school for white children and each addi- 
tional high school for colored children shall respectively have an average 
daily attendance in excess of two hundred (200) pupils. 

2326-149. Section 201. Each first class high school or high school 
of the first group in the State shall receive State aid up to one half of the 
total amount paid locally for high school teachers' salaries, including 
one fourth of the salary of the principal or of the Superintendent of 
Schools serving as principal, provided that the State aid to any such high 
school shall not exceed twenty-four hundred dollars ($2400) in any one 
school year. Each second class high school or high school of the second 
group in the State shall receive State aid up to one half of the total 
amount paid locally for high school teachers' salaries, including one 
fourth of the salary of the principal, provided that the State aid to any 
such high school shall not exceed sixteen hundred dollars ($1600) in any 
one school year. Provided further that such State aid shall be in addi- 
tion to any aid that such high schools may receive by reason of the provi- 
sions of the Smith-Hughes Vocational Education Act. 

2326-150. Section 202. Boards of Education of special school dis- 
tricts shall admit to the high schools under their respective jurisdiction 
pupils from the county systems of schools, on the conditions and at the 
tuition rate prescribed by the State Board of Education. 

2326-151. Section 203. All certificates or diplomas issued to 
students having completed a course of study in a State aided high school 
shall show the group to which said high school belongs, the course taken 
by the student, and the number of years of instruction given; and the 
graduates of any State aided high school providing four years of instruc- 
tion shall be admitted without examination to the freshman class of any 
college of Delaware receiving financial aid from the State. 

2326-152. Section 204. The State Board of Education, subject to 



APPENDIX 199 

the provisions of this Article shall prepare courses of study to be used by 
the respective groups of high schools described in this article, and shall 
make rules and regulations for their government. 

Article 13 
Trustee of School Fund 

2326-153. Section 205. The State Treasurer shall be Trustee of 
the School Fund, with power to receive, sue for and recover any money, 
or property bequeathed, given or belonging to said fund, except stock of 
the Farmers Bank; to vote as holder of any stock belonging to said fund; 
to lease any real estate devised, given, or belonging thereto, for terms not 
exceeding three (3) years, and to distrain for and collect the rents thereon 
accruing, and to improve and manage such estate, as may be proper. 

23 26-1 54. Section 206. All moneys or property given, appropriated, 
or ill said fund, are appropriated and dedicated to the purpose of free 
public education in the State of Delaware. The public faith is solemnly 
pledged for the faithful appropriation of all bequests, or gifts, to said fund 
toward the establishment and support of free public schools. The princi- 
pal of said fund is inviolable, only the current income therefrom may be 
used, and no part of the income of said fund may be applied to any college 
or university. 

2326-155. Section 207. The income of the School Fund shall be 
apportioned annually to the support of free public schools according to 
the provision of Section 213 of Article 14 of this Chapter. 

2326-156. Section 208. The Auditor of Accounts shall each year 
as soon as possible after July first audit the investments, the business and 
financial transactions, and the records and the accounts of the Trustee 
of the School Fund. The Trustee of the School Fund shall publish the 
results of such audit, and shall also mention the name of any person who 
has made within the last year a gift, to said fund, with the amount, or 
value thereof. 

Article 14 

State Support and Distribution of State Support 

2326-157. Section 209. The State Treasurer shall charge against 
and pay as hereinbefore or hereinafter provided the annual appropriation 



200 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

made by the General Assembly for the support of the State Department 
of Education, including the expenses of the State Board of Education, and 
the support and expenses of the office of the State Commissioner of Educa- 
tion; the annual appropriation for the payment of teachers' expenses for 
simimer school attendance; the annual appropriation for the encourage- 
ment of the consolidation of schools; the annual appropriation to meet 
the provisions of the Smith-Hughes Vocational Education Act; the an- 
nual appropriation for the payment of the salaries of county superin- 
tendents, county supervisors and county attendance officers; the annual 
appropriation for State aid to approved high schools; the annual appro- 
priation for State aid to elementary schools; and such other appropria- 
tions as may be made for the support and encouragement of the free 
public schools of the State. 

2326-158. Section 210. Such appropriations as are made by the 
General Assembly for the payment of the expenses of the State Board 
of Education and for the support and expenses of the office of the State 
Commissioner of Education, also the appropriation for the payment of 
teachers' expenses for summer school attendance, the appropriation for 
the encouragement of the consolidation of schools, the appropriation for 
the payment by the State of the salaries of County Superintendents of 
Schools, of county superv isors and of county attendance officers, and 
the appropriation to meet the provisions of the Smith-Hughes Vocational 
Education Act and such money as is received from the Federal Govern-* 
ment by reason of the provisions of the Smith-Hughes Vocational Educa- 
tion Act, shall be paid by the State Treasurer on the second Tuesday of 
January of each year, or as soon thereafter as possible, to the Treasurer 
of the State Board of Education, and the Treasurer of the State Board 
of Education shall pay out such funds only on orders signed by the 
President and the Secretary of the State Board of Education. 

23 26-1 59. Section 211. The State Treasurer shall pay such amounts 
as are due to the Treasurers of the respective County Boards of Educa- 
tion, and of the respective Boards of Education of special school districts, 
on account of the appropriation for State aid to approved high schools, 
as is provided for in Section 200 of Article 12 of this Chapter. 

2326-160. Section 212. State aid to elementary schools shall in- 
clude the entire income from the School Fund, the entire income from 
the Income Tax as provided for in Chapter 8 of Volume XXIX of the 



APPENDIX 201 

Laws of Delaware, and such additional appropriation as the General 
Assembly may make for State aid to elementary schools. 

2326-161. Section 213. The State Board of Education shall, on or 
before the fifteenth day of September in each year, beginning with the 
year 1919, certify to the trustee of the school fund every school district 
in this State in which are maintained free public schools adequate for the 
children of school age in such district, and conforming to the standards, 
rules and regulations prescribed by the said State Board of Education 
under the provisions of this Act. The State Treasurer shall apportion 
on or before the last day of September, in his capacity as Trustee of the 
School Fund and Treasurer of the State, the entire above mentioned 
amounts among all the school districts of this State (including all special 
school districts then in being) certified to him by the State Board of 
Education, as aforesaid. The entire above mentioned amounts shall be 
apportioned on the basis of the total elementary school enrollment during 
the preceding school year, as certified to each year on or before the fif- 
teenth day of September by the State Commissioner of Education. Pro- 
vided that neither the enrollment nor the attendance of pupils in high 
schools shall be taken into account in making this apportionment. On 
or before the first day of October of each year, the State Treasurer, 
in his capacity as Trustee of the School Fund and Treasurer of the 
State, shall pay in the above proportions the amounts due from State 
aid to elementary schools to the respective Treasurers of all the school 
districts in this State (including special school districts then in being) 
certified to him by the State Board of Education as hereinbefore in this 
Section provided, and he shall report to the State Commissioner of 
Education the amounts paid to each of the respective Treasurers. 

Miscellaneous 

2326-162. Section 214. County Superintendents of Schools and 
Superintendents of Schools of special school districts in which deaf and 
dumb pupils reside, who receive oral instruction by a private tutor, shaU 
see that appropriations for that purpose are so expended. 

2326-163. Section 215. Unclaimed proceeds of sale of strays and 
fines imposed by virtue of stray laws shall be paid to the Treasurers of 
the respective County Boards of Education and Boards of Education of 



202 NEW SCHOOL CODE 

the respective special school district, instead of as provided for in Chapter 
One Hundred and Four of the Revised Code. 

2326-164. Section 216. That all Acts and all parts of Acts incon- 
sistent with the provisions of this Act, be and the same are hereby re- 
pealed to the extent of such inconsistency. 

Approved April 14, A, D. 1919. 



Lt 19 



